Faculty Teaching Guide to Accompany MyLiteratureLab

Transcription

Faculty Teaching Guide to Accompany MyLiteratureLab
Contents
INTRODUCTION (3)
THE LITERARY ELEMENTS: TESTING YOUR KNOWLEDGE (3)
Diagnostics (linked to Glossary of Literary and Critical Terms) (3)
Interactive Readings (3)
WHERE LITERATURE COMES TO LIFE: THE LONGMAN LECTURES (4)
Part 1: Reading (5)
Part 2: Interpreting (5)
Part 3: Writing (6)
Critical Thinking and Writing Questions (and Answers) by Lecture (8)
James Baldwin, “Sonny’s Blues” (8)
Toni Cade Bambara, “The Lesson” (9)
Elizabeth Bishop, “One Art” (10)
Gwendolyn Brooks, “The Mother” (12)
Lewis Carroll, “Jabberwocky” (13)
Raymond Carver, “Cathedral” (14)
Kate Chopin, “Désirée’s Baby” (16)
Kate Chopin, “The Story of an Hour” (17)
Kate Chopin, “The Storm” (19)
Billy Collins, “The Names” (20)
Robert Frost, “Acquainted with the Night” (21)
Robert Frost, “Mending Wall” (23)
Robert Frost, “The Pasture” (24)
Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun (24)
Nathaniel Hawthorne, “Young Goodman Brown” (26)
Seamus Heaney, “Digging” (29)
Langston Hughes, “The Weary Blues” (30)
Zora Neale Hurston, “Sweat” (31)
Henrik Ibsen, A Doll’s House (33)
Gish Jen, “In the American Society” (35)
James Joyce, “Araby” (36)
John Keats, “Bright star!” (37)
Bobbie Ann Mason, “Shiloh” (38)
Edna St. Vincent Millay, “Love Is Not All” (39)
Joyce Carol Oates, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”(40)
Tim O’Brien, “The Things They Carried” (41)
Flannery O’Connor, “A Good Man is Hard to Find“ (42)
Wilfred Owen, “Dulce et Decorum Est” (43)
Sylvia Plath, “Lady Lazarus” (44)
Edgar Allan Poe, “Ligeia” (45)
Edward Arlington Robinson, “Richard Cory” (46)
Mary Jo Salter, “Welcome to Hiroshima” (47)
William Shakespeare, Hamlet (48)
William Shakespeare, The Theme of Love in Sonnets (50)
William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (51)
William Shakespeare, Sonnet 73 (52)
Sophocles, Oedipus the King (53)
Alice Walker, “Everyday Use”(56)
Eudora Welty, “Why I Live at the P.O.” (57)
William Butler Yeats, “The Lake Isle of Innisfree“ (58)
WRITING AND RESEARCH: TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES (60)
Overview (60)
Using Exchange (60)
Exploring Research Navigator (61)
The Research Process (63)
Finding Sources (64)
Using Your Library (69)
Start Writing (70)
End Notes and Bibliography (70)
Avoiding Plagiarism (71)
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INTRODUCTION
Welcome, instructors, to MyLiteratureLab, the online literature resource designed to complement
and augment your class discussions and assignments. The site is divided into three main sections:
1. The Literary Elements: Testing Your Knowledge
2. Where Literature Comes to Life: The Longman Lectures
3. Writing and Research
This Faculty Teaching Guide overviews the goals of the first and third main sections of the Web
site. The discussion of the second section, “Where Literature Comes to Life: The Longman
Lectures,” offers considerably more detail. Here we highlight the primary benefit of each lecture.
For your convenience, we also repeat the Critical Thinking and Writing Questions that follow
each part of each lecture: Reading (Part 1), Interpreting (Part 2), and Writing (Part 3). We
designed this area so your students could e-mail you their answers to the questions after listening
to the lecture. You may also want to use these questions for class discussion or as writing
assignments.
.
THE LITERARY ELEMENTS: TESTING YOUR KNOWLEDGE
This section of the Web site features Diagnostics (linked to the Glossary of Literary and Critical
Terms) and Interactive Readings.
Diagnostics
The Diagnostics, including multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank questions, enable students to
assess their understanding of literary theory and criticism by quizzing them on terms such as
imagery, archetype, point of view, and soliloquy. Upon completing each diagnostic, students are
forwarded to the Glossary of Literary and Critical Terms to fill any gaps in their knowledge.
Interactive Readings
The Interactive Readings section is designed to help students understand how to use literary
elements to interpret works of literature. As students read a particular selection, key passages are
highlighted. When students click on the highlighted text, a box appears that contains
explanations, analysis, and/or questions highlighting how the passage can be interpreted using
the literary elements. These readings can be assigned as homework, and students may be
required to submit their written responses to the questions.
You can find the Interactive Readings listed below by choosing the literary element shown in
parentheses. Whether you teach by genre or by theme, assigning these readings to your students
can enhance their understanding and appreciation of literature. The Interactive Readings are:
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Gwendolyn Brooks, “We Real Cool” (Rhythm)
Kate Chopin, “The Storm” (Setting)
Lewis Carroll, “Jabberwocky” (Word Choice)
Robert Frost, “Out, Out—” (Reading Poetry)
Zora Neale Hurston, “Sweat” (Theme)
James Joyce, “Araby” (Point of View)
Katherine Mansfield, “Miss Brill” (Character)
Guy de Maupassant, “The Necklace” (Tone and Style)
Flannery O’Connor, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” (Character Analysis)
Wilfred Owen, “Dulce et Decorum Est” (Voice)
Sylvia Plath, “Metaphors” (Figures of Speech)
Theodore Roethke, “Root Cellar” (Imagery)
William Shakespeare, “Othello” (Critical Analysis)
William Shakespeare, “Sonnet 73” (Explication)
Wallace Stevens, “Anecdote of a Jar”(Symbol)
Dylan Thomas, “Do not go gentle into that good night” (Form)
John Updike, “A & P” (Reading Stories)
Walt Whitman, “Calvary Crossing a Ford” (Form)
William Butler Yeats, “Who Goes with Fergus?” (Sound)
WHERE LITERATURE COMES TO LIFE:
THE LONGMAN LECTURES
This section of the Web site features a menu of nine-minute lectures. All 40 of the Longman
Lectures are given by Longman’s authors – critically-acclaimed writers, award-winning teachers,
and performance poets. Longman’s “guest lecturers” discuss some of the most commonly taught
literary works and authors in depth. In the process, they encourage students to analyze stories,
poems, and plays, and develop thoughtful essay ideas.
The lectures are richly illustrated with words and images to contextualize and enrich the content
of each lecture. As stated earlier, each lecture is divided into three parts – Reading, Interpreting,
and Writing. Each part of each lecture is accompanied by a diverse selection of Critical Thinking
and Writing Questions. Some questions provide feedback and suggestions for online research
and essay development. Students’ answers to the questions can be e-mailed to you or used to
spark class discussion.
As a whole, the lectures are designed to complement in-class discussion of particular works and
augment related assignments in your syllabus. Available to students around the clock, the threepart structure of the lectures encourages students to read and interpret works more thoughtfully
and spark ideas for research and writing. The lectures may also be assigned as extra-credit work
or be used as an emergency substitute instructor.
Below we discuss the primary purpose of each part of the lectures and provide examples.
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Part 1: Reading
Students often are reluctant readers. The first part of each lecture, “Reading,” sparks student
interest through the lecturer’s interpretative reading. The reading of a key passage places the
work within a context that appeals to students. Some readings are dramatic and performative;
others provide analysis about how a work is structured. The lecturers’ varying approaches to
their subject matter helps reach students with different learning styles. At the same time, related
visuals help students see the work while reading it. Here are a few examples of opening
statements in Part 1 of the lectures.
•
From Shakespeare’s sonnets lecture: In Shakespeare’s Sonnets (published in 1609 but
probably written in the middle 1590s), love—whether for the fair youth or the dark
lady—is only one of several themes. Some of these themes—for instance beauty and the
tragic effect of time on beauty—are easily connected with love. Let’s glimpse a few of the
themes by looking at the opening lines of some of the sonnets.
•
From the Flannery O’Connor “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” lecture: What if I told you
about a writer who included in her works a youth who, in baptizing his mentally defective
nephew, manages to drown him, or a woman with a wooden leg and a Ph.D. in
philosophy who . . . is robbed of her wooden leg and stripped of her self-confident belief
in nothing . . .? If I then told you that this author is a devout Catholic, would you be
astonished? If so, you are not yet familiar with the works of Flannery O’Connor.
•
From the James Baldwin “Sonny’s Blues” lecture: From the opening scene . . . until the
final scene in a darkened nightclub when Sonny, bathed in blue light, performs the magic
of improvisational jazz on his piano, these two brothers move in and out of each others’
lives, attempting to communicate but most often failing.
Part 2: Interpreting
Many students lack confidence in their ability to analyze and interpret works of literature.
Some students are impatient to find the “right” answer. Part 2 of each lecture provides
provocative “keys” for understanding. The lecturers’ comments humanize both the work and
its author. For example:
•
From the Seamus Heaney “Digging” lecture: Not only is he [Heaney] honoring the work
of his father and grandfather, he is using his own kind of digging—that is, writing
poetry— to show us the worth of the work they did. And in this respect, he honors and
carries on their tradition—but with a different tool. As such, it’s a poem about writing
poetry—with digging as its metaphor.
•
From the James Joyce “Araby” lecture: Notice how the bright images of his love,
Mangan’s sister, always appear out of the dreary background that surrounds them.
Compare the words and phrases that are used to describe Mangan’s sister and the boy’s
feelings about her with the language that describes his neighborhood or his everyday
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activities. Let the words open your senses—visualize and feel the bright, warm image of
Mangan’s sister as her dress swings and the soft rope of her hair tosses from side to side
and contrast it with the dark, cold image of the short days of winter and the acrid smell of
ashpits and horse stables in the surrounding neighborhood.
•
From the Billy Collins “The Names” lecture: A typical Collins poem begins in the
morning. The poet walks around his empty house, thinks about last night’s supper or
tonight’s bottle of wine, puts on some jazz, goes out and runs a few errands or takes a
train into the city, comes home, looks out the window, and makes a poem. To say that
Collins writes a low-pressure kind of poetry is like observing that a flat tire could stand a
little air. It’s the poetic equivalent of an episode of Seinfeld, “the show about nothing.”
But . . . I sympathize. Indeed, I’m a little envious. Collins’s saving grace is the wit that
laces his observations of everyday matters. Poets, he says, “have enough to do /
complaining about the price of tobacco, // passing the dripping ladle, / and singing songs
to a bird in a cage. // We are busy doing nothing . . . .”
•
From the Hawthorne “Young Goodman Brown” lecture: Let’s consider two specific ways
to better understand and enjoy this famous story. First, can you sum up its theme—what’s
its central message? In some stories, the theme is easy to find. You can just underline its
general statements, those that appear to sum up some large truth. In a fable, the theme is
often stated in a moral at the end, such as: “Be careful in choosing your friends.” In
Stephen Crane’s story of a shipwreck, “The Open Boat,” Crane tells us, among other
things, that “it occurs to a man that Nature does not regard him as important.” But
Hawthorne’s story is trickier. If you underline its general statements and expect one of
them to be its theme, you’ll miss the whole point of the story. See paragraph 65: “Evil is
the nature of mankind.” Does Hawthorne believe that? Do you? Those are the words of
the Devil, always a bad guy to believe. No, after you finish reading the story, especially
pondering its closing paragraph, you can sum its theme much better in your own words.
Part 3: Writing
In Part 3, Writing, the lectures further the discussions in Part 2 and help students form their own
interpretations. The historical and cultural backdrop of the times, the writer’s life experiences,
and a close reading of the text all help students make connections. The lectures are peppered
with ideas that students might pursue to write a critical essay or even a research paper. Here are a
few examples:
•
From the Seamus Heaney “Digging” lecture: While both use natural imagery, Yeats
writes of nature in idealized terms that seem to transcend everyday life. Images like
“Dropping the veils of morning to where the cricket sings” and “midnight’s all a
glimmer, and noon a purple glow” remove us from the gritty world of toil. For Heaney,
nature is anything but an escape. It is the here and now substance of everyday living—
“the harsh “rasping” of the spade—the “straining rump”— and the “heaving of sods.”
No pun intended on the title “Digging,” but Heaney’s poetry is much earthier and
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grounded than that of Yeats. And much of this attitude toward nature can be attributed to
his own background.
•
From the Baldwin “Sonny’s Blues” lecture: Though the setting in Harlem in the mid
twentieth century is in many ways crucial to an understanding of the problems faced by
these two African American brothers, their story is universal. Therefore, an essay on the
theme or themes in “Sonny’s Blues” can be especially informative. Ask yourself what
major ideas Baldwin is suggesting in the story. One theme, the theme of learning wisdom
through suffering, is as old as literature, and Baldwin shows us through the searching
and suffering of the two brothers that literature can share with us the wisdom of the ages,
that we can learn about the agony and the beauty and the creativity within ourselves by
vicariously sharing theirs.
•
From the Kate Chopin “The Story of an Hour” lecture: Kate Chopin published several of
her stories in the magazines of her time. However, Vogue and The Century initially
refused to publish "The Story of an Hour." The Century regarded the story as "immoral"
and Vogue only published it after Chopin’s Bayou Folk became a success. Discuss "The
Story of an Hour" in terms of the artistic, moral, and intellectual sensibilities of Chopin’s
time. Consider why Chopin’s story was branded as "immoral" and why literary
perceptions have changed over the years.
•
From the Sophocles Oedipus the King lecture: Over time, this play has drawn many
conflicting interpretations. Here are a few long-debated questions for you to think about.
Is Oedipus a helpless, passive tool of the gods? Who is responsible for his terrible
downfall? Does he himself bring about his own misfortune? Is he an innocent victim? If
the downfall of a person of high estate (as Aristotle thought tragedies generally show) is
due to a tragic flaw or weakness in the person’s character, does Oedipus have any tragic
flaw? If he does, how would you define it? Consider his speeches, his acts, his treatment
of others. Does Oedipus seem justified in afflicting himself with blindness? Does his
punishment fit, or fail to fit, his supposed crime?
Critical Thinking and Writing Questions (and Answers) by Lecture
Each part of the three-part lectures is accompanied by Critical Thinking and Writing Questions.
These questions help reinforce the content given in the lecture and provide helpful suggestions
for research and writing. Students can respond to the questions directly on screen and have their
responses e-mailed to you.
Below is a list of all the lectures on the site. Included also is a brief discussion of the primary
benefit of each lecture. We also have collected the questions your students can respond to after
listening to each lecture. For some questions you will find suggested answers. Again, you may
choose to assign these questions in class or as homework.
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James Baldwin, “Sonny’s Blues”
This lecture, given by Gloria Henderson, focuses on several of the stylistic and thematic aspects
of “Sonny’s Blues.” Professor Henderson examines Baldwin’s skillful use of point of view and
of the story within a story. She also discusses the symbols of music, windows, and light and
darkness.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: How does Baldwin’s real-life experience connect to his short story, “Sonny’s
Blues”? Visit PBS’s biography on Baldwin for more background on his life at [link to
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/database/baldwin_j.html].
Question 2: In the final scene, Sonny performs some improvisational jazz. What is
improvisational music? What do we learn about Sonny through his performance? Explain.
Answer 2: Sonny plays a melody composed in his soul. He is not viewing sheet music or
remembering another song. He composes his own music, spontaneously, driven by feelings and
emotions supported by his talent alone. What that melody communicates—pain, frustration, love,
family, sorrow—reveal to the reader Sonny’s character.
Question 1: Professor Henderson observes that Baldwin adds depth and meaning to “Sonny’s
Blues” through the effective use of symbolism. Identify words or passages that demonstrate
Baldwin’s use of symbolism, such as of light and darkness, past and present, etc.
Question 2: Much of Baldwin’s short story is connected to emotions and feelings expressed in
jazz music. Research jazz music, (try A Passion for Jazz Web site [link to:
http://www.apassion4jazz.net/] or the Institute of Jazz Studies at Rutgers University [link to:
http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/rul/libs/jazz/jazz.shtml] and listen to some sound clips at [link to
[http://www.jazzpromo.com/sections.php?op=listarticles&secid=12]). Is it important to
understand jazz or know its history to understand its significance and meaning in the Baldwin’s
story? Why or why not?
Question 3: Compare and contrast the characters of the two brothers in “Sonny’s Blues.” What
sort of person is the narrator? How does he feel about his brother? What do we know about
Sonny and his feelings for his brother? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Professor Henderson provides many suggestions for essay topics. Select an essay topic from the
ideas below.
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Question 1: Write an essay exploring the motivation behind Baldwin’s choice of narrator for
“Sonny’s Blues.” Why do you think he chose the older brother to narrate the story? How would
the story be different if narrated from the perspective of the younger brother?
Question 2: In what ways does “Sonny’s Blues” tell a universal story? What is the theme of the
story? In what ways is this theme emblematic of the times, and in what ways does it transcend
time and place for a more universal message?
Question 3: Explore the theme of “wisdom through suffering” in Baldwin’s short story “Sonny’s
Blues.”
Toni Cade Bambara, “The Lesson”
In this lecture, B. Minh Nguyen explains why “The Lesson” presents a political statement that is
as relevant today as it was in the early 1970s when it was first written. Professor Nguyen points
out the story’s exploration of how our society is stratified by geography, class, and race.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What is the voice of the narrator in “The Lesson”? From whose perspective is it
written? How does Cade Bambara use language and dialect to create a character in a particular
time and place? Explain.
Question 2: Review the definitions of “round” and “flat” characters in the Literary Terms
section of this Web site. Is Sylvia a “round” or “flat” character? What about Sugar and the other
children? Explain.
Question 1: Compare the “The Lesson,” by Toni Cade Bambara to “Araby,” by James Joyce. In
what ways are the stories similar? What does each protagonist learn? How does a journey lead to
their epiphanies? How would “The Lesson” be different if it were written in the voice of a
retrospective adult, as in “Araby,” rather than a child?
Question 2: This story is written from the perspective of a strong-willed child who must face the
reality that the world she thought she understood is unfair and perhaps even unjust. Write a short
essay about a time when you realized that the world wasn’t necessarily a fair place. Describe the
situation and your feelings. Were you angry? Sad? Indifferent?
Question 3: Sylvia seems to harbor certain contempt for Miss Moore and her educational
agenda. The story focuses on Sylvia’s experience as seen through her eyes and emotions. Write
an essay about the character of Miss Moore. What do you think she feels about the field trip to
FAO Schwarz? The children? Her role as teacher of life’s lessons?
Part 3: Writing
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Question 1: “The Lesson” describes a field trip in which a group of children are made aware of
two worlds—the haves and the have-nots. Nguyen notes that Bambara was active in both civil
rights and the women’s movement. In what ways is this story a political commentary? Write a
critical essay describing how Bambara’s background is reflected in this work.
Question 2: Nguyen comments that “Bambara has said that she learned the power of words by
listening to ‘the speakers on Speaker’s corner in Harlem.’” Review the language and words
spoken by the characters in this story and select a few passages that seem particularly powerful
to you. In what ways do the characters serve as Bambara’s mouthpiece? Explain your response in
an essay.
Elizabeth Bishop, “One Art”
Diane Thiel explores the poetic form of the villanelle as demonstrated by Elizabeth Bishop in
“One Art.” Using a strict pattern of repetition, the villanelle is a particularly challenging form of
poetry that can create cyclical, hypnotic effects while reinforcing a central idea. Thiel describes
how Bishop’s life influenced this particular poem and offers students some ideas on crafting their
own villanelles.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What words and phrases does Bishop repeat in this poem? How does this repetition
contribute to the theme and message of her poem? Explain.
Question 2: Bishop wrote many drafts of this poem, choosing her words very carefully to convey
the right sentiment. What items does she cite as losing? Why do you think she chose these
particular things? Does she really think that their loss is “no disaster”? Explain.
Answer 2: For more information on the many drafts of Bishop’s poem, “One Art,” see “The
Drafts of ‘One Art’” by Brett Candlish Millier
Question 1: What is a villanelle? Why do you think Bishop chose this form to write “One Art”?
Question 2: Thiel observes that the use of a repeated line in the villanelle allows one to “explore
the many layers which surround a single subject, such as loss.” What are the many layers
addressing the subject of loss in this poem? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Try writing a villanelle. Don’t be discouraged if you find it challenging. In his essay
on “One Art,” [link to: http://www.english.uiuc.edu/maps/poets/a_f/bishop/drafts.htm] Brett
Candlish Millier observed that Bishop told an interviewer that, after years of trying to write a
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villanelle, the poem just came to her one day. “I couldn’t believe it—it was like writing a letter”
(Spires 1981, p. 64). Pick a subject that has several angles to explore. Try to create “movement”
within the poem by exploring different layers of meaning in the repeated line.
Note: This question is not on the Web site but you might want to discuss this question with your
students.
Alternate Question 2: Compare Bishop’s first draft of “One Art” to her final version. Consider
the words she chooses to keep, and the ones she drops or refines. For example, in her first
version she writes that she lost:
one peninsula and one island . . . .
a small-sized town . . . and many smaller bits of geography or scenery
a splendid beach, and a good-sized bay . . ..
a good piece of one continent
and another continent—the whole damned thing!
In what ways are the two versions similar, and how are they different? Do you prefer one version
to another? Explain.
Question 2: Notice how Bishop’s “One Art” is developed via a “listing” effect. Make a list (of
at least twenty lines) in your journals: i.e.: “things I should have said to him” or “bits of gossip.”
As you work with the list, see if a refrain begins to naturally emerge. As you discard or add, see
how the drafts begin to change. Are there any discoveries you make in the process of reworking?
Question 3: Consider Bishop’s dramatic revision from her first draft to her final one. Now
choose a poem you have written in which the process of revision has been giving you difficulty.
It may not have found its best form or incarnation. Put the poem aside, and begin again. Perhaps
write the poem from a different viewpoint (i.e.: use the grandmother’s voice instead of the
father’s. Or, decide to make it more of a narrative, instead of focusing on a lyrical moment. Or
vice versa.)
Gwendolyn Brooks, “The Mother”
In this lecture, Steve Lynn helps students navigate the complex ideas presented in Gwendolyn
Brooks’s poem “The Mother.” Professor Lynn demonstrates how the poem’s meaning can be
drastically altered by changing the wording of the first line of the poem only slightly. This
lecture consequently encourages students to consider the importance of every word in a poem
and the deliberate nature of the creative process.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Lynn explains that just as Robert Frost is identified with locality (snowy woods, old
New England farms, and country settings) Gwendolyn Brooks’s poetry is known for its urban,
modern edge. If you knew nothing about the poet, what would you assume about the person who
wrote this poem based only on the poem itself? Explain.
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Question 2: What was your first reaction to this poem upon reading/hearing it? Describe your
emotions and impressions and explain what words, phrases, or ideas influenced your initial
reaction.
Question 1: Lynn explains that Brooks did not intend for this poem to support either side of the
abortion argument. One way she avoids endorsing one view over another is through the
personification of the word “abortion.” Lynn wonders how changing the first line would alter our
interpretation of the poem and Brooks’s “side” of the abortion debate. What do you think? Can
you surmise how Brooks feels about abortion based on this poem alone? Would changing the
first line as Lynn suggests make it easier to figure out where she stands? Why or why not?
Question 2: Review the last two lines of Brooks’s poem. What do these lines say about how she
feels about her “dim killed children”? Are these lines important to the poem? Would the poem be
different if these lines were not included? Why or why not?
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Write a short essay exploring the status of the speaker as mother or non-mother.
Refer to specific lines in the poem to support your viewpoint. Try to focus on the poem itself,
avoiding any religious, moral, or political standpoints you had before reading the poem.
Question 2: Lynn states that this poem “refuses easy answers, any complacent judgments.” Do
you agree? Write an essay in which you either agree or disagree—in whole or in part—with his
assertion. Do you think Brooks expresses an “answer” or “judgment” in this poem? Or does she
indeed avoid making one at all? Explain referring to lines and words in the poem to support your
argument.
Lewis Carroll, “Jabberwocky”
Lecturer Wendy Steiner explores the quest for romance and other conventions of Victorian
literature in this lecture on Lewis Carroll’s nonsense poem, “Jabberwocky.” Which is master
asks Professor Steiner, meaning or nonsense? What accounts for the poem’s appeal among
children and adults? Steiner examines how Carroll plays with language and our expectations of
grammar in this beloved poem.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Lewis Carroll, the pen name for Charles Dodgson, wrote this poem for his younger
brothers and sisters and later included it in Through the Looking Glass, the sequel to Alice in
Wonderland. In what ways is this poem a “children’s poem”? Do you think a child’s initial
reaction to the poem would be different from your own? Why or why not?
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Answer 2: Carroll’s poem is now generally considered to be the greatest of all “nonsense poems”
in English. Even some of its non-words are listed in the Oxford English Dictionary. Although
many of the words are nonsense, we can still guess at their implied meanings based on the other
words in the poem and our understanding of more conventional literature. A child’s reaction may
differ significantly from an adult’s response to the poem. Depending on the age of the child,
he/she may demand to know what the nonsense words really mean. Or he/she may take for
granted that these words are indeed “real” ones. Some children may simply like the sounds of the
poem—its use of assonance, cacophony, and alliteration. As an experiment, read or listen to the
poem with a child.
Question 2: While Alice is able to read the nonsense poem of “Jabberwocky” by holding it up to
the looking glass, there are still many words that she does not understand. Pick a stanza in the
poem and identify all of the nonsense words. Then, explain what you think they might mean and
why.
Answer 2: As an additional step to this exercise, you may try looking up the non-words you
identified from the Carroll poem and see if any of them—in whole or in part—are included in the
dictionary. Are some words in the dictionary very similar to the words in the poem? Do you
think you could use a dictionary to understand this poem?
Question 3: Lewis Carroll explained what some of the words in his poem “meant” when Humpty
Dumpty deciphers the first stanzas of the poem. Does knowing Humpty’s “meanings” help
clarify the poem? Why or why not?
Question 1: Alice says that the poem of “Jabberwocky” is difficult to understand, exclaiming, “it
seems to fill my head with ideas, only I don’t exactly know what they are.” Explore the idea of
words and meanings. In what ways does this poem empower the reader to “make” meaning? Do
words have meanings in themselves, or do we as readers and speakers of language construct the
meaning? Explain.
Answer 1: Read more about words, context, and meaning in the Glossary of Literary Terms.
Question 2: Steiner asks, “Do people with clout control the meaning of words?” Answer this
question from your own analysis of words and your personal experience. What influences the
meaning of a word? Who controls what they mean? How are they introduced? To get started,
consider the meanings of the following words: “mouse,” “cool,” “surf,” and “crib.” What are the
multiple meanings of these words, and what influenced their meanings? Identify some additional
words in our lexicon that have been added or changed in recent years. Then, answer Steiner’s
question.
Answer 2: A deeper question connected to this issue is “who holds the clout?” Right now, it
would seem as if youth and pop culture hold considerable influence over the transformation of
words and the introduction of new ones. Words like “cool” and “bad” can have both positive and
negative meanings depending on their use. Technology also influences our language in
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interesting ways. A mouse can be a small, furry mammal or a handheld device used to navigate a
computer screen. “Surf” can mean anything from ocean waves, to riding those waves, to
scanning the Internet. Does clout equal power? And how long does “clout” last in a world where
language is constantly changing?
Question 3: In what ways is the poem “Jabberwocky” a “quest for romance”? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Steiner quotes a famous riddle of Carroll’s, “How is a raven like a writing desk?”
The riddle captures the essence of Carroll’s use of nonsense. Write an essay in which you
explore the role of nonsense in language and in life. Why does a poem like “Jabberwocky” hold
so much appeal?
Answer 1: An interesting bit of anecdotal information on this riddle: Carroll did not provide an
answer to his nonsense question, but to his surprise, some of his readers came up with clever
answers, including, “Poe wrote on both.”
Question 2: In part two of this lecture, Steiner quotes Humpty Dumpty, who says that a word
means “just what I choose it to mean—neither more nor less.” Steiner herself, in the last part of
this lecture, proposes some possible meanings of “Jabberwocky,” including the “great fall.”
What do you think this poem means, if anything? Is it merely a work of children’s literature, or
does it represent something deeper? Explain.
Raymond Carver, “Cathedral”
Lecturer Porter Shreve discusses how Raymond Carter leads us on a journey of personal
transformation of an unnamed narrator in the short story “Cathedral.” From a first-person point
of view, Carver uses communion and communication to lead us toward the narrator’s remarkable
epiphany. Professor Shreve provides suggestions for further writing and encourages students to
think about the story from a personal perspective.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: The narrator in “Cathedral” is “bothered” by the idea of a blind man coming to stay
in his home. What does he think the man will be like? On what does he base his assumptions?
Are they fair?
Question 2: How does the narrator’s admission of his discomfort contribute to the readers’
perception of what kind of person he is? Would the story be different if he did not admit his
prejudices? Explain.
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Question 1: Write an essay exploring how the narrator’s initial feelings about the blind man, and
how he first treats him, reveal problems in his relationship with his wife and even himself.
Question 2: Shreve observes that in most cases, epiphanies in literature are rarely happy, which
is why the narrator’s sudden realization about the blind man and about himself is “all the more
satisfying.” Write an essay about a time when you had a positive epiphany in which you realized
something remarkable about the nature of something or about yourself. What circumstances led
to your revelation? Did it change your life? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: At the end of this part of his lecture, Shreve states that “sober and happy” Carver’s
characters “shifted from isolated detachment…to a new openness and compassion.” In what
ways does “Cathedral,” written in 1981, represent this new style of Carver’s?
Question 2: What accounts for the transformation of the narrator from angry hostility to open
compassion? What does the narrator learn about himself as he tries to “explain” about a cathedral
to his blind guest?
Kate Chopin, “Désirée’s Baby”
Lecturer Terezinha Fonseca discusses the issues of identity and love in this lecture on Kate
Chopin’s “Désirée’s Baby.” Professor Fonseca contrasts the imagery that surrounds Désirée and
Armand and its relationship to the racial context of the story. Is Armand indeed the “embodiment
of evil” or a tragic lover who fails an important test?
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Désirée is a foundling—an abandoned child—who is adopted into a rich Creole
family. Her husband rejects her when she bears a child that clearly is not white. In what ways
does this rejection make Désirée a “foundling” again?
Question 2: What does Armand’s reaction to his wife’s presumed ethnic heritage tell us about
him? How does it influence our opinion of him and what happens later in the story? Explain.
Question 3: Although the child is not white, Armand does not believe that the child is not his,
only that Désirée is not fully white herself. Does his rejection of both mother and child seem
particularly harsh? Explain.
Question 1: What is the symbolic meaning of Désirée’s garments? What meaning do they take at
the end of the story?
15
Question 2: In what way is Désirée’s comment that her skin is whiter than Armand’s ironic?
Question 3: One reading of this story is that Armand believes it is his wife who carries the blood
“of the race that was cursed with slavery.” Some critics argue that Armand has suspected this all
along. If so, what design might he have had in marrying Désirée? In making her believe that she
is the one of mixed race?
Question 4: Désirée presumably kills herself in the swampy bayou, not because she believes she
is not white, but because Armand no longer loves her. Does this reaction surprise you? How does
Désirée compare to other Chopin heroines, such as Calixta or Louise? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
In the final part of this lecture on “Désirée’s Baby,” Professor Fonseca offers several suggestions
for essay explorations. Respond to each idea in a short free-writing exercise.
Question 1: What knowledge and experience of interracial marriages do you bring to the reading
of this text?
Question 2: What role does ancestry and heritage play in “Désirée’s Baby?”
Question 3: What role does race play in this story?
Kate Chopin, “The Story of an Hour”
What did marriage mean to Victorian women? In this lecture, lecturer Terezinha Fonseca
explores the theme of captivity and marriage in Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour.”
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Professor Fonseca observes that Kate Chopin was a major feminist writer of the
nineteenth century. Consider what being a feminist writer during that time period means to how
we read and critically evaluate her stories. How does knowing that Chopin is a feminist writer
influence our interpretation of the scene Professor Fonseca quotes from “The Story of an Hour”?
Answer 1: Knowing that Chopin embraced feminist ideals may influence our understanding of
her material and what messages and themes she is likely to promote. For example, we may
understand more quickly that Louise Mallard, upstairs in her room, is having an epiphany of
sorts connected to her realization that her husband is dead. As she contemplates the full
implication of his death, she seems to resist and then yield to the realization that she is “free.”
What does “free” mean to a Victorian woman?
Question 2: What does this description of Louise tell us about her? About what sort of woman
she is? How does the open window contribute to our understanding of her character?
16
Answer 2: There are different responses to this question but one angle may consider the
transformation of Louise from a stunned, repressed woman who has been merely a bystander in
life to one who sees the possibility of becoming a thinking, active player in life. The open
window, with its symbolic implications of freedom and new life (do we not consider “escaping”
from an opened window and “running away” to a new life?) reflects this growing awareness
Louise is experiencing in this passage.
Question 3: Professor Fonseca notes that Chopin became popular in the 1960s with the growth
of the women’s movement. Her novel The Awakening (1899) about an intelligent, passionate
woman who insists on independence at any cost is recognized as a feminist work ahead of its
time. In what ways could this short story, and the passage quoted in the first part of this lecture,
reflect the title of her famous novel?
Question 1: In this part of the lecture, Professor Fonseca compares and contrasts the thematic
functions of the open windows and closed doors in “The Story of an Hour.” What does the open
window symbolize? The closed door to Louise’s bedroom? The front door to the house? How do
these physical structures contribute thematically to the events and action of the story?
Answer 1: Professor Fonseca observes that the doors and windows of the house can serve
“several thematic functions.” The upstairs (with Louise’s bedroom and its feminine symbolism)
is Louise’s domain. Although confined, she has control of the door to her room and she sits by an
opened window. The downstairs, the realm of men and social expectations, has another closed
door—the door to the house. The house may represent the confinement of women to domestic
life and social restrictions on their behavior. As Louise descends the staircase, with her feelings
of triumphant freedom, Brently opens the front door--a door over which she has no control (it is
opened with his key). What are the implication of other objects, such as the key and the
staircase?
Question 2: What does Louise’s body language tell you about her feelings and emotions?
Identify all references to her body and analyze her actions, expressions, and gestures.
Answer 2: In addition to the physical actions of Louise’s body, we also are told in the first
sentence that she suffers from a weak heart—another physical reference. Note other references to
her heart in this story. How does Louise’s heart connect to the physical actions of her body?
What other themes and meanings could her heart represent?
Question 3: At the end of this part of the lecture, Professor Fonseca asks if you agree to the
patriarchal pronouncement that Louise’s death was due to joy. Answer this question in your own
words. How does Chopin expect us to react? How does she set up Louise’s death and how we are
likely to interpret it?
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Part 3: Writing
In the final part of this lecture on “The Story of an Hour,” Professor Fonseca offers several
suggestions for essay explorations. Respond to each idea in a short free-writing exercise.
Question 1: How does the architectural layout of the Mallard’s house illuminate issues related to
the public and private organization of the patriarchal family, gender relations, gender division of
labor, and class distinctions?
Question 2: Compare and/or contrast the nature imagery in the story outside the house, with the
cloistered atmosphere within the house.
Question 3: Discuss “The Story of an Hour” in terms of the artistic, moral, and intellectual
sensibilities of Chopin’s time. Why would this story be considered “immoral”? How has our
attitude to this story changed and why?
Kate Chopin, “The Storm”
In this lecture, Terezinha Fonseca discusses the narrative framework of Kate Chopin’s short story
“The Storm.” Fonseca discusses each of the five parts of the story, and how the imagery and
setting of the story reflect the sexuality and passion that the story’s protagonists, Calixta and
Alcée, feel for one another.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What does the fact that Chopin herself decided not to publish “The Storm” tell you
about her feelings about the piece? About social expectations of literature and women writers?
Explain.
Question 2: How does the storm outside affect Calixta? Alcée? What does she think of when she
sees the lightening bolt? How does Alcée react? Explain.
Question 1: Professor Fonseca observes that “The Storm” is comprised of five scenes told in
sequence. Why do you think she chose this format?
Question 2: In what ways does the storm outside mirror Calixta’s internal sexual turmoil? How
does a storm begin, grow, strike, and abate?
Question 3: Professor Fonseca notes that one of the controversial issues of this story is its “lack
of moral closure.” What moral issues are raised in this story? Does Chopin’s closing sentence,
that “everyone was happy” seem immoral? What is your viewpoint?
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Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Read “At the ’Cadian Ball,” the story that develops the characters of Calixta and
Alcée six years before “The Storm” takes place. How does one story inform the other? What
does “At the ’Cadian Ball” tell us about Calixta? About Alcée? Their passion for each other?
Explain.
Question 2: What social and ethnic issues are raised by “At the ’Cadian Ball” and “The Storm”?
Question 3: At the end of this lecture, Professor Fonseca wonders why Calixta and Alcée do not
act on sexual impulses in “At the ’Cadian Ball” when both are still single, but do so without guilt
in “The Storm.” What do you think?
Billy Collins, “The Names”
Lecturer Sam Gwynn notes similarities between W.H. Auden’s “September 1, 1939” and Billy
Collins’s poem commemorating September 11, “The Names.” Professor Gwynn encourages
students to appreciate the “great dignity and simplicity” of Collins’s elegy, a poem, he explains,
that needs little critical commentary. Gwynn also notes how Collins’s poem follows one of the
oldest poetic devices, the catalogue or poetic listing such as one finds in the epic poems of
Homer and Virgil.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Find out what happened on September 1, 1939 by searching on the Internet or in
your textbook. How does Auden’s poem describing this day reflect similar feelings expressed by
many people after experiencing the events of September 11, 2001?
Answer 1: This day is recognized by most Europeans as the day World War II began. On
September 1, 1939, German forces invaded Poland without a declaration of war. The Polish
army, completely unprepared to face the strength of the German army, was utterly defeated.
Adolf
Hitler,
in
Berlin,
addressed
the
Reichstag
[link
to
http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/holocaust/resource/document/HITLER1.htm] defending the decision to
invade Poland declaring, “I am determined to eliminate from the German frontiers the element of
insecurity, the atmosphere which permanently resembles that of civil war.”
In London, the shocked British government demanded that the Germans withdraw immediately
from Poland. Neville Chamberlain, the Prime Minister of Great Britain, addressed the House of
Commons [link to http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/wwii/gb1.htm] condemning the
German’s actions. Because of the fear of air attacks, the evacuation of young children from
London began shortly thereafter, and general mobilization was announced as England entered
World War II. Although he was in the United States in 1939, Auden, as a British citizen, would
have been acutely aware of the significance of this day.
19
Question 2: Make a list of the images in the poem and describe how they contribute to the
overall theme and tone of the poem. Is it important to understand the background of the poem?
What about Auden himself? Explain.
Question 3: Gwynn begins his lecture with a reference to September 1. Review this poem and
connect the theme, tone, and underlying points to the events of September 11. Could this poem
have been written only a few years ago in response to that day? Why or why not?
Question 1: “But American poets will have a hard time if they attempt a direct response to these
events, because poetry by its nature moves us inward, not outward to the public and the
collective.” If you were in conversation with Collins and he expressed this sentiment, how would
you reply? Why?
Question 2: Given the descriptions and insights in this part of the lecture, what themes would
you expect to find in Collins’s poetry?
Question 3: Gwynn comments, “…I suspect that great personal and public suffering generally
tends to elicit responses of commensurate magnitude in the best artists.” Read Ani DiFranco’s
poem, “Self Evident,” written in response to September 11 at her Web site Righteous Babe [link
to http://www.righteousbabe.com/ani/l_self_evident.html]. (Unlike Collins, DiFranco began
working on her poem immediately after September 11.) Connect DiFranco’s poem to the points
Gwynn makes in Part 2 of his lecture. Do you think DiFranco would agree with Auden’s original
assessment that “We must love one another or die”? Why or why not?
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: What is Gwynn’s opinion of Billy Collins? What reason did Collins give as to why,
even though he was then the poet laureate, he would not write a poem about the events of
September 11? Do you think he should have tried to write a poem at that time? Why or why not?
Question 2: What are the characteristics of epic poetry, also known as “heroic verse”? Look up
epic online at Wikipedia [link to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epic_poetry]. Explain how these
characteristics fit Collins’s poem. In what ways does his poem serve as the “tale of the tribe”? Is
his poem “heroic” in nature? Explain.
Question 3: Do you think this poem will endure based on its poetic merits? Why or why not?
Robert Frost, “Acquainted with the Night”
In this lecture, Sylvan Barnet analyzes Robert Frost’s poem, “Acquainted with the Night.”
Reviewing the poem line by line, Barnet explores how this poem follows the format of a sonnet,
20
while not actually following a traditional sonnet’s rhyme scheme. Barnet encourages students to
consider the literal and symbolic meanings of words in Frost’s poetry.
21
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What other meanings could “night” have in this poem? Explain.
Question 2: What is the tone of this poem? Does Frost seem upset? Is he sad? Contemplative?
How does the tone of the poem contribute to how we read and interpret it? Explain.
Question 3: Before he reads Frost’s poem, Barnet reads part of a preface to Frost’s play, A Way
Out. Why do you think Barnet chose to read this preface before discussing the poem
“Acquainted with the Night”?
Question 1: What was your first reaction to hearing the poem “Acquainted with the Night”?
Could you relate to anything Frost meant in his poem? For example, have you ever “dropped
your eyes, unwilling to explain” to an authority figure what you were doing out late or in a
strange place?
Question 2: How does Frost use the elements of light and dark to create a mood in this poem?
Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Select another poem by Frost and write an essay discussing the imagery and
symbolism in it. Analyze the poem line by line as Barnet does in his lecture on “Acquainted with
the Night.” What kinds of images does he use in the poem? How do the images connect? How do
they relate to the plot of the poem? Are they used literally? Metaphorically? Explain.
Question 2: At the end of his lecture, Barnet provides suggestions for analyzing poems. Select a
poem from your book or from on online resource such as Bartelby.com [link to
http://www.bartleby.com/104/index2.html ] and read it aloud several times. Listen for the
speaker’s tone and for the stresses and silences that create special effects. Analyze the poem
according to Barnet’s suggestions. Who is speaking? How does the speaker’s voice work in the
poem? What is the dramatic situation? Finally, explain how approaching the poem this way
helped you understand some of its nuances and complexities.
22
Robert Frost, “Mending Wall”
Robert Frost’s poetry often depicts moments drawn from ordinary life. In this lecture exploring
several of Frost’s poems, Sylvan Barnet explains how Frost’s language often contains multiple
meanings.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What are aphorisms? What role do they play in Robert Frost’s poetry? In addition to
the aphorisms that Barnet cites, try to locate three more examples from Frost’s poetry in your
book.
Answer 1: Frost, as Barnet points out, was fond of aphorisms. An aphorism is a saying, a
statement that expresses a principle. Barnet explains that aphorisms are the “proverbs” of a
particular person. They are generalizations of personal opinion.
Question 1: “The Mending Wall,” contains two aphorisms, “Something there is that doesn’t love
a wall” and “Good fences make good neighbors.” Are both true? How does Frost’s poem support
both of these seemingly opposing statements?
Answer 1: There are several ways of interpreting these lines. Frost’s first lines reveal that the
“somethings” that do not love a wall are usually natural forces that oppose man-made
restrictions. Nature seems to try to undo the wall’s purpose. Could this be because walls are
unnatural barriers? The neighbor in Frost’s poem makes the statement, “good fences make good
neighbors.” Is the neighbor saying that he prefers the inanimate wall to a human neighbor?
Perhaps. What does this statement tell us about the neighbor? About Frost?
Question 2: Barnet asks which side do you think Frost is on? Read the poem and find evidence
in it to support your position.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Barnet suggests reading attentively—listening to all the voices in the poem.
Compare and contrast the voice of the speaker and neighbor.
Question 2: Write an essay relating an experience in which you concluded that “good fences
make good neighbors.” Or relate an experience that refutes the statement.
23
Robert Frost, “The Pasture”
Sylvan Barnet discusses the poem “The Pasture,” which Frost used to open most of his
collections of poetry. Although Frost’s poetry is filled with symbolism, Barnet warns students to
use caution not to “press it too hard to find some sort of secret meaning,”—something Frost once
warned students against himself.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Read the poem slowly or listen to Barnet’s reading again. Do you find any unusual
words or images?
Question 2: Why do you think Robert Frost used his 1913 poem, “The Pasture,” as a prologue to
all editions of his collected poems? In what ways does it serve as a prologue to a book of poetry?
Question 1: Paraphrase the poem in your own words. Compare your paraphrase to the
explication Barnet gives in Part 2. Do you find “surprises” in your paraphrase? Is the speaker in
your paraphrase “engaging”?
Question 2: Barnet observes that there is “always the danger…when we read a poem…that we
will press too hard to find some sort of secret meaning. “ Review the “The Pasture” and interpret
the poem from your own perspective. Does your analysis seek “secret meanings”?
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Comment on Frost’s use of the line “You come too.” Does this invitation by Frost
help you relate to the poem?
Question 2: At the end of this lecture, Barnet notes that while the poem itself contains no
metaphors, the entire poem could be considered one. What does he mean? Explain.
Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun
In this lecture, Frank Madden discusses how the play, A Raisin in the Sun, based upon Langston
Hughes’ poem “A Dream Deferred,” transcends issues of race, identity, and success. Much more
than simply a play about “dreams deferred,” Lorraine Hansberry’s work reveals our common
humanity.
Part 1: Reading
24
Question 1: Lindner describes the people of Clybourne Park as “hardworking, honest people”
with a “dream.” What sort of people do you imagine as “hardworking” and “honest?” What
moral images do Lindner’s words create? How is his description more disturbing in the context
of what he is saying?
Question 2: Lindner tries to argue using Toulmin logic (see literary terms) when he states, “But
you’ve got to admit that a man, right or wrong, has the right to want to have the neighborhood he
lives in a certain kind of way.” Do you agree with this argument? Why or why not? In what ways
does he try to appeal to emotion? Why does his argument fail to hold up to close analysis?
Question 3: Based on the two readings, in what ways are both Lindner and Walter making the
same essential argument? Explain.
Answer 3: There are two core statements in each speech. Lindner states, “But you’ve got to
admit that a man, right or wrong, has the right to want to have the neighborhood he lives in a
certain kind of way.” Walter, later in the play explains to Lindner, “…we have thought about
your offer and we have decided to move into our house because my father—my father—he
earned it.” Both men are arguing the same thing—that every man has the right to live where he
wishes and follow a dream. The fact that the two men have different views of what that dream is
and the ideal place to live does not dilute the core argument. Both, perhaps ironically, want the
same thing.
Question 1: Does a “dream deferred” dry up like “a raisin in the sun?” What happens when we
achieve our dreams or what we think are our dreams? Is the striving more important than the
achievement? Explain.
Question 2: What are the dreams of the characters in this play? Define their dreams and what
they represent for each character.
Question 3: Madden notes that, in recent years, some students believe that Walter should have
taken Lindner’s money and built a house some place else, some place that they would not have to
deal with the animosity of neighbors who did not want them. What do you think? How would
this play, and its meaning, be different if Walter took Lindner’s money?
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: In what ways does Lorraine Hansberry tell the “truth” about the characters in her
play, A Raisin in the Sun? What truths does she tell? Why did some African Americans object to
the way Hansberry depicted her characters? Why did her play receive such acclaim in spite of
such discomfort? Explain.
Question 2: Lindner goes to great lengths to explain that the people of Clybourne Park are not
racist, they just believe that, “rightly or wrongly…for the happiness of all concerned that our
25
Negro families are happier when they live in their own communities.” This play was written in
1959. In September 2003, David Brooks says in his Atlantic Monthly essay, “People Like Us”:
“Maybe it’s time to admit the obvious. We don’t really care about diversity all that much
in America, even though we talk about it a great deal. Maybe somewhere in this country
there is a truly diverse neighborhood in which a black Pentecostal minister lives next to a
white anti-globalization activist, who lives next to an Asian short-order cook, who lives
next to a professional golfer, who lives next to a postmodern-literature professor and a
cardiovascular surgeon. But I have never been to or heard of that neighborhood. Instead,
what I have seen all around the country is people making strenuous efforts to group
themselves with people who are basically like themselves.”
Has much changed about where people wish to live? Do we truly wish to live in our “own
communities”? How are these communities defined? How do you think Hansberry would
respond to Madden’s statement?
Nathaniel Hawthorne, “Young Goodman Brown”
Lecturer X.J. Kennedy asks students to think about the central theme and message of Nathaniel
Hawthorne’s short story “Young Goodman Brown.” Kennedy warns students that this story is
trickier than it may seem. Can you trust the Devil’s words? What is the significance of Faith’s
pink ribbon? Kennedy encourages students to explore the connections between Salem’s dark
history and the role of the Puritan church in this short story.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What does Goodman Brown believe about his family? Does his firm belief that his
father and grandfather were “good Christians” deter him from attending the Devil’s meeting in
the woods?
Answer 1: It is interesting that Goodman Brown makes this statement to the Devil as they walk
together. Could it be that he is trying to convince himself that his father and grandfather were
godly men? Could he suspect otherwise? Would he have turned around had the Devil agreed
with him? Another title for the Devil is “Prince of Lies.” Should Brown believe that the Devil is
speaking the truth? Does the fact that the Devil gives examples of how he knew Brown’s father
and grandfather make his argument more credible?
Question 2: What moral pronouncement is Hawthorne making through the Devil’s speech about
Goodman Brown’s relatives?
Answer 2: The examples the Devil provides of how he “helped” Goodman Brown’s grandfather
and father not only reveal how Hawthorne felt about the Puritan’s role in these actions, but much
about his ancestors. In the first case, the Devil assists Constable Brown in whipping a Quaker
woman through the streets of Salem. Quakers were persecuted, even executed, for their religious
beliefs. One of Hawthorne’s ancestors, Major William Hawthorne, played a key role in
26
punishing Quakers in the 1650s, including tying a woman to a cart and whipping her through
town. King Philip’s war was a war that broke out in 1675 between some Native tribes and the
Puritans. Many tribes tried to remain neutral or even sided with the English, but were attacked
anyway by zealous Puritans. The fact that Hawthorne chooses these two historical events as
“proof” of the Devil’s familiarity with Brown’s family tells us much about what Hawthorne felt
about his ancestry. What other examples of Hawthorne’s moral position on Puritan history can
you find in this story?
Question 3: Hawthorne notes that Goodman Brown and the Devil resemble each other. Why do
you think he mentions this? What might it tell us about the Devil? About Goodman Brown? The
nature of evil? Explain.
Answer 3: There are many answers to this question. One might be that we would like to think
that we will recognize evil when we see it. But evil, in this case, looks like a familiar elderly
gentleman. The resemblance may imply that there is a close connection between the human soul
and the Devil himself. Hawthorne may be reminding his readers that evil may come in innocent
forms.
Question 1: Kennedy notes that in fables there is often a moral provided in the end. What might
be the moral of this story?
Answer 1: As Kennedy notes, simply underlining thematic points in the story, such as “Evil is
the nature of mankind” (paragraph 65) would miss the point of this tale. Goodman Brown is
nervous about going to the midnight meeting, but he is still going. He makes his mind up to go
after he finds Faith’s pink ribbon; if Faith goes, so will he. Goodman Brown seems to believe
that it is okay to follow the crowd—the devil tells him that he knew his father and grandfather.
Many members of the town are on their way to the meeting. And now Faith, too, seems to be on
her way. Does a good soul buckle under peer pressure? Do we follow groups even when we
know that they are doing something wrong? How shaky is our “faith,” and how easily can it be
broken? These are just a few possible morals that might be pulled from this story. What others
can you think of?
Question 2: What is the significance of the pink ribbon that falls from the sky?
Answer 2: It is important to note that Goodman Brown does not see his wife, Faith, when the
ribbon falls from the sky. He presumes that the ribbon comes from her cap, and that she was
flying above him, probably with Goody Cloyse—the name of a real woman who was falsely
accused of witchcraft during the Salem witchcraft hysteria of 1692. Could this be another of the
Devil’s tricks? Could the Devil have sensed Brown’s hesitation, and made this last push to
convince him? Why is Brown, who seemed so utterly convinced of his wife’s goodness, so ready
to believe that she is off to the diabolical meeting in the woods? And why is he so willing to
follow her?
27
Question 3: Why is it significant that Hawthorne names Goodman Brown’s wife “Faith”? Locate
references to Faith in the story and analyze what happens immediately before and after she is
mentioned. What does Faith symbolize or represent?
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Kennedy discusses the Salem witchcraft trials of 1692. To learn more about the
trials and the hysteria that triggered them, visit the National Humanities Center’s Web site [link
to http://www.nhc.rtp.nc.us/tserve/eighteen/ekeyinfo/salemwc.htm] and learn more about the
history of this dark period in American history. For the names of the victims, the accusers, and
other key players in the trials, see The Salem Witchcraft Papers hosted at the University of
Virginia Library [link to http://etext.virginia.edu/salem/witchcraft/texts/]. What connections can
you make between the real historical event and the story of Young Goodman Brown?
Question 2: Because he believes that all of the people he trusted—the people he believed were
“good” Christians—are, in fact, hypocrites, Goodman Brown dies hopeless and miserable: “And
when he had lived long, and was borne to his grave, a hoary corpse, followed by Faith, an aged
woman, and children and grand-children, a goodly procession, besides neighbors, not a few, they
carved no hopeful verse upon his tombstone; for his dying hour was gloom.” How does his
experience in the woods as a young man lead to this sad end? Was it real or a dream? Why is he
so willing to believe it was real, especially when he never discusses it with anyone?
Question 3: Many Puritans believed that in exchange for “signing the Devil’s book” they would
enjoy certain benefits—such as magical powers, wealth, or influence. Brown turns away from
the Devil’s basin and refuses to be baptized into this diabolical community. What does he get in
return for his refusal?
Question 4: Kennedy observes that Goodman Brown’s willing acceptance that his neighbors are
all in league with the Devil mirrors the Puritans’ readiness to prosecute members of their own
community for witchcraft. Explore this element in the human personality. Why do we seem so
willing to believe that people are bad rather than good? Is it because we are drawing from our
own inward experiences and feelings? Is it human nature? Find parallels between this element of
human nature and the experience of Goodman Brown.
Seamus Heaney, “Digging”
In this lecture, Frank Madden encourages students to think about the ways Seamus Heaney, in
his poem “Digging,” both appreciates his father’s capable life—while admitting he would not
wish to live the same life. He asks students to consider the metaphor of digging in the poem, and
how their own familial heritage influences their view of their parents and, by extension,
themselves.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: How does Heaney’s title for his poem connect to the poem’s theme and message?
Consider the multiple meanings the word “digging” could have for this poem. For example, in
28
what ways does Heaney’s poem “dig” into his own past? The past of his native land? The act of
actually “digging”? Explain.
Question 2: Heaney repeats the first two lines of the poem at the end of his poem. How does this
repetition frame his poem? Why do you think he repeats these lines? What symbolism does he
attach to his pen? Explain.
Question 1: At the beginning of this part of his lecture, Frank Madden asks you to consider what
your parents and grandparents may have done for a living and how you feel about their work.
After reviewing Heaney’s poem, summarize what you think his feelings are about his ancestor’s
work. Can you relate to his way of thinking? Explain.
Question 2: How does Heaney use descriptions of nature in his poem? Identify lines in the poem
that you feel are particularly compelling and explain why you like them.
Question 3: In an interview with the e-zine Salon, Seamus Heaney commented that poetry is
“born out of the quarrel with ourselves.” Review the interview online at
http://www.salon.com/weekly/heaney1.html. In what ways is the poem “Digging” “born” from
Heaney’s own life? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Using “The Lake Isle of Innisfree” for comparison, Madden notes that while
Seamus Heaney has been compared to fellow Irish poet William Butler Yeats, “Yeats’s language
is in the sky and Heaney’s well-anchored to the earth.” Contrast the two poems referring to
specific lines or images from each.
Question 2: Madden observes that Yeats and Heaney come from very different backgrounds—a
point he begins to demonstrate in the third part of his lecture. Read some other poems by Heaney
as well as his biography posted on the Nobel Prize Web site at
http://nobelprize.org/literature/laureates/1995/heaney-poetry.html. Based on this poem and the
ones posted on the Nobel Web site, describe Heaney’s poetic style in greater detail citing details
and examples.
Langston Hughes, “The Weary Blues”
Lecturer R.S. Gwynn provides a short biographical background on the life and career of
Langston Hughes and his influence on the Harlem Renaissance. Hughes’s poem, “The Weary
Blues,” reflects the musical excitement emerging from Harlem during the period before World
War II. Gwynn connects influence of the musical genre of blues on Hughes’ poem.
29
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: The first eight lines of this poem situate the reader/listener of this poem in a place
and time. Where is “Lenox Avenue”? Look up Lenox Avenue online such as at New York City’s
official tourism Web site [link to http://www.nycvisit.com/content/index.cfm?pagePkey=435].
What does this locale tell you about the poet and his experience? Why do you think Hughes says
“down on Lenox Avenue,” rather than “up on Lenox Avenue”? Explain.
Answer 1: Lenox Avenue is a main street in Harlem, considered “uptown” as the NYC Web site
indicates. The fact that Hughes uses the word “down” is quite deliberate, as anyone from the
New York City area would have known. The area of New York City south of Harlem, which
during the 1920s and 1930s was largely populated by whites, is known as “downtown.” If
Hughes had said he was “up on Lenox Avenue,” we would guess that he had come “up” from
“downtown”—a white area of the city. Thus, his phrasing “down on Lenox Avenue,” identifies
the poet as a member of the community in Harlem. We know that the poet is probably black.
Why is this important for the reader to understand? Would our interpretation of the poem be
different if we thought that the speaker was white? What other interpretations of the word
“down” might Langston have meant?
Question 2: What is happening in this poem? What is the speaker in this poem describing? How
does the poet’s choice of words reflect the subject matter of the poem?
Answer 2: The speaker describes listening to and watching a blues musician at a Harlem
nightclub or speakeasy (the sale of alcohol was illegal during Prohibition, but underground clubs,
call speakeasies, were common). The words of the poem suggest the tone and tempo of blues
lyrics, making the reader feel like they are sharing the moment down on Lenox Avenue. The
swaying of the musician, “rocking back and forth,” and “swaying to and fro,” not only reflect the
motion of the blues singer, but of the music he is playing.
Question 1: Gwynn notes that Langston Hughes spent most of his adult life in Harlem, and was a
key player in the Harlem Renaissance movement. What was the Harlem Renaissance? Why was
it an important period in American literary history? How did it influence future social,
intellectual, and political events in the latter half of the twentieth century? To learn more about
the Harlem Renaissance, visit the Kennedy Center’s Web page “Drop Me Off in Harlem,” [link
to http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/exploring/harlem/artsedge.html].
Question 2: Gwynn observes that Harlem was a “magnet” for African American artists,
including painters and musicians as well as writers. Visit Online NewsHour’s Web site on the art
of
the
Harlem
Renaissance
hosted
by
PBS
[link
to
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/forum/february98/harlem_2-20.html] and the Rhapsody in Black
[link to http://www.iniva.org/harlem/] Web site hosted by the Institute of International Visual
Arts. In what ways does the art of the Harlem Renaissance connect to the poetry by artists
30
writing at this time? Pick a poem by one or several of the poets cited in this lecture and try to
draw some comparisons between the art and the poetry of the period.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: In this part of the lecture, Gwynn observes that in the first part of the poem Hughes
uses, for the most part, a four-beat line rhyming in couplets. “Listen to it,” urges Gwynn, “What
you’ll hear is the basic rhythmical structure of rap and hip hop.” Compare the four-beat line
rhyming structure to a popular hip hop or rap song. Can you detect any similarities? What
connections does this modern form of music have to Jazz and Blues?
Question 2: At the end of his lecture, Gwynn quotes Langston Hughes, “Sad as the blues may
be, there’s almost always something humorous about them—even if it’s the kind of humor that
laughs to keep from crying.” Working with either “The Weary Blues,” or another Hughes poem
from your anthology, find elements of humor, even dark humor, in the poem.
Answer 2: The Blues for Peace Web site [link to http://www.bluesforpeace.com/songlist.htm]
has the lyrics of many popular old and new blues songs. Referring to Gwynn’s points in his
lecture on blues music, analyze one of the songs on the list as if it were a poem.
Zora Neale Hurston, “Sweat”
Lecturer Suzanne Disheroon-Green explores prejudice, class, and relationships within the
African-American community in Zora Neale Hurston’s short story, “Sweat.” Professor
Disheroon-Green encourages students to consider the gender politics present in the story, the
moral decisions made by the characters, and Hurston’s incorporation of African-American folk
culture in her fictional works.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Hurston’s story is filled with symbolism. What symbolism is present in this scene
in which Delia opens the basket on the bed and discovers the snake? Explain.
Question 2: What is Delia’s initial reaction upon discovering the snake? What action does she
take? What happens during the time she spends in the hay barn? What does decision does she
make?
Question 1: Disheroon-Green notes that “Sweat” takes place in an all-black community,
separating it from racial issues and focusing attention on the thematic concern of the way men
and women negotiate relationships. What does Hurston’s story reveal about these relationships?
What role do the townspeople play in supporting Hurston’s exploration of male/female
relationships? Explain.
31
Question 2: Delia must choose whether to help Sykes or let him suffer a death connected to his
own treachery. How does Hurston prepare the reader for this final decision and Sykes’ painful
death? What passages in the story reveal that Delia will ultimately let Sykes die?
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Disheroon-Green observes that while Hurston’s stories don’t focus on racial politics,
she still confronts many social and racial issues. Write an essay exploring a social or racial (or
both) issue in the short story, “Sweat.” How does Hurston address the issue? Can you tell how
she feels about it based upon how she treats it in the story? Explain.
Question 2: Hurston’s title comes from Delia’s declaration to Sykes when he tries to bait her
into an argument. “Looka heah, Sykes, you done gone too fur. Ah been married to you fur fifteen
years and Ah been takin in washin for fifteen years. Sweat sweat, sweat! Work and sweat, cry
and sweat, pray and sweat!” In what ways are Delia’s marriage to Sykes connected to her life of
work and “sweat?” Explain.
Question 3: Consider the final moments of the story in which Delia, hiding outside, witnesses
her husband’s terror and subsequent death. Disheroon-Green wonders whether Delia is absolved
from any moral responsibility to Sykes if he tried to kill her first. What do you think? Should
Delia have helped Sykes? Did she set him up? Was justice served? Why or why not?
32
Henrik Ibsen, A Doll’s House
In this lecture Gloria Henderson discusses the reaction to Ibsen’s play when it was first produced
as well as later productions, both on stage and on film, stressing both the changes made by
different directors and the universal themes that make it relevant in modern times.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Why do you think Ibsen was told to change the ending of A Doll’s House? Why was
his subject matter “taboo”?
Answer 1: The duties and expectations of women in the late Victorian period dictated that they
were foremost dutiful wives and dedicated mothers. Visit Melanie R. Ulrich’s Web site on
Victorian
women
and
marriage
at
[link
to:
http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~ulrich/femhist/marriage.shtml] for a sociological perspective on
this issue. Nora’s realization that her life is empty because men have not allowed her to have
thoughts and opinions of her own was socially upsetting. Women who did express themselves
openly were considered mentally or emotionally unwell.
Question 2: Review Nora’s speech to Torvald in which she describes herself as a doll. How does
her language support her claim that she is nothing more than a doll? What function does a doll
have? How does the object compare to the life Nora has led thus far? Explain.
Question 3: Henderson states, “imagine the horror of the audience when, at the end of the play,
Nora walks out of the house …leaving behind her husband and children.” Why would such an
ending be particularly atrocious to a Victorian audience? Do you think modern audiences have
similar reactions? Why or why not?
Answer 3: Nora’s decision to leave her husband and children behind was unthinkable. Ibsen
wrote his play in the height of the Victorian period, when the cult of motherhood was at its peak.
While audiences would have looked with ill favor on a woman who leaves her husband, they
would have been morally repulsed by the idea of a woman leaving her children. See the BBC’s
Victorian
history
pages
[link
to:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/lj/victorian_britainlj/idealwomen_02.shtml?site=history_society_w
elfare] for a discussion on women and Victorian motherhood. Would such an action be more
acceptable today? Do we have different expectations of mothers than we do of fathers?
Question 1: Torvald reminds Nora that she is “first and foremost…a wife and a mother.” Nora
responds that she feels that she is “first and foremost a human being.” Who do you think is right?
Do one’s responsibilities come before one’s personal perceptions and desires? Are the two things
separate or connected?
33
Question 2: Henderson notes that while it may be tempting to think this is simply a feminist
play, Torvald is trapped by social expectations as well as Nora. Write a short essay exploring
how Torvald is trapped. Is he, too, a doll?
Answer 2: While a great deal of research and analytical commentary is available about Victorian
women, very little social criticism is available about Victorian men. Men were the primary
breadwinners, the heads of household, and the disciplinarians of the home. They controlled the
financial, political, intellectual, religious, and industrial arenas. Analyze Torvald’s actions,
reactions, and assumptions of his wife and his marriage. In what ways has Victorian society
robbed him of a more meaningful relationship with his wife?
Question 3: When staging a play, directors and actors bring their own interpretations to the
work, emphasizing some speeches or details over others. Select a character from A Doll’s House
and explain how you would stage and play that character. What lines would you emphasize?
How would you deliver them? What details, such as the room’s staging, lighting, or sound would
you highlight? Explain.
Answer 3: For descriptions of past interpretations of A Doll’s House, visit Northern State
University’s
Web
site
on
Ibsen’s
play
at
[link
to:
http://www.northern.edu/wild/0304Season/DollsHouse/Doll_Nts.htm]
Part 3: Writing
Professor Henderson provides many suggestions for essay topics. Select an essay topic from the
ideas below.
Question 1: Compare A Doll’s House to on of the “well-made” plays that preceded it. See the
Centre for Ibsen Studies [link to: http://www.hf.uio.no/ibsensenteret/index_eng.html] at the
University of Oslo for information about these plays.
Question 2: Compare the character of Nora from A Doll’s House to the character of Hedda
Gabler in the play of the same name.
Question 3: Write an essay in which you explain why you support or oppose Nora’s decision at
the end of the play to leave her family. Refer to the play and research on the Victorian era to
support your viewpoint.
34
Gish Jen, “In the American Society”
In this lecture on Gish Jen’s short story “In the American Society,” B. Minh Nguyen and Gloria
Henderson explore the concept of the American Dream for immigrant families through the
experiences of the Chang family. They encourage students to consider how the story illuminates
the two worlds many immigrant families try to balance—the internal world of the family with its
culture, history and traditions, and the external world of “American Society.”
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What allows Ralph Chang to open up and discuss his grandfather? Why do you
think he was reluctant to tell his daughters about his grandfather before they took over the
pancake house?
Question 2: This story is narrated by Callie Chang, and thus is seen presumably through her
eyes. Is Callie narrating the story as an adult, remembering in hindsight, or as a teenager in junior
high? Can you tell? Explain.
Question 1: Nguyen and Henderson observe that many of Jen’s stories explore concepts of
ethnicity and “Americanness.” How do the Changs fit into “the American society”? What do
they do to try to embrace the culture of the “U S of A”? Explain.
Question 2: Booker and Cedric send Ralph Chang a letter apologizing for skipping bail. What is
humorous about their letter? What does it reveal about the immigrant experience? About “the
American society”? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: In 2003, the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) aired a special on the Chinese
American
experience
“Becoming
American.”
[link
to:
http://www.pbs.org/becomingamerican/index.html] Read some of the portraits and stories,
including architect Maya Lin’s interview on living between two cultures. Pick a story or portrait
and write an essay on the challenges Chinese immigrants faced as they adjusted to American
society. Whenever possible, connect points Jen makes in her story to comments real people made
in their interviews for PBS.
Question 2: This story is divided into two parts, one focusing on the private world of the Chang
family and one on the public face they assume for “American Society.” In what ways does the
Chang’s private society intrude on their ability to thrive in outside society? Explain.
Question 3: Is Ralph Chang’s act of throwing his jacket into the pool an act of foolishness or
autonomy? What motivates his action? Write an essay exploring the implications of this action
for the Chang family.
35
James Joyce, “Araby”
Lecturer Frank Madden explores the narrator’s voice in James Joyce’s short story “Araby,” in
which an adult speaker reflects upon a childhood epiphany resulting from his first crush. Madden
discusses the paralysis that marked the Irish experience from Joyce’s perspective as it is reflected
in the characters in many of his short stories.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: How does Joyce use atmosphere and setting to establish a mood? Why is this mood
important to understanding the boy’s emotional state? Explain.
Question 2: In his description of the marketplace, Joyce specifically mentions the name
O’Donovan Rossa. Read more about this controversial figure in nineteenth century Irish politics
[link to: http://www.irelandsown.net/rossa.html]. Why do you think Joyce includes him? How
does his reference add to the overall feeling of the narrative? Explain.
Question 1: As Frank Madden notes in his commentary, “Araby” is the recounting of a man’s
memories of a boyhood crush he had on his friend’s older sister. Recall a crush of your own from
your childhood. What were the circumstances surrounding your crush? Who was the object of
your obsession? Why? How “real” was it for you? Did the person you admire know? Explain.
Question 2: At the end of the story, the young boy has an epiphany. Madden conjectures that
readers may be puzzled by the boy’s distress at the end of the story. Why would a reader be
confused by the boy’s anguish? Were you confused, or could you relate to the boy’s reaction?
Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Madden observes that Joyce scholar William York Tindall has suggested that the
underlying theme of all the stories in Dubliners, including “Araby,” is of paralysis. Do you agree
with this assessment? Support your point of view with references from the story.
Question 2: At the end of his lecture, Madden states that Joyce wrote about what he knew. James
Joyce lived at 17 North Richmond Street. When he was about 12 years old, there was an Oriental
fair in Dublin. So we can assume that “Araby” has a very personal connection for Joyce. Why do
you think he chose to tell this particular story? What do you think his objective was? Explain.
John Keats, “Bright star!” (compared to Frost’s “Choose Something Like a
Star”)
36
In this lecture, Steve Lynn discusses John Keats’s sonnet, “Bright star!” analyzing the poem
from a New Critical perspective. He explains that other critical approaches such as the historical
approach or the psychological approach can also be quite valuable when analyzing a poem. At
the end of his lecture, Lynn encourages students to compare “Bright star!” to “Choose
Something Like a Star” by Robert Frost.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What are your first impressions upon hearing the poem “Bright star!”? Write about
your first impressions and feelings about the poem. Did it strike you as romantic? Did you
connect the poem to its author? Did you envision the poem in a particular time or place? Explain.
Question 2: Lynn explains in his introduction that Keats wrote this poem—thought for a long
time to be his last, in his mid-20s, a few years before his untimely death. In what ways does the
poem reflect youth? Does the information that Keats was ill influence how you interpret the
poem? Explain.
Question 3: Analyze the form and structure of this poem. If necessary, review the discussion on
sonnet structure in your textbook or in the Glossary of Literary Terms. In what ways is the
sonnet conventional? Does it follow the rigid structure of a sonnet? Does it bend any “rules”?
Explain.
Question 1: Lynn notes that New Criticism (see the Glossary for a complete definition) requires
that we approach the poem at face value—outside of any historical, biographical, or
psychological influences the author may have been experiencing at the time he or she crafted a
work. Write a short interpretation of this poem from a New Critical approach.
Question 2: While we may read a poem and interpret it a face value, many poets write from
emotions and feelings they were experiencing at the time. For a short biography of Keats’s life,
see [link to: http://englishhistory.net/keats/life.html]. After reviewing the biography, consider
how Keats’s life may have influenced this poem.
Question 3: Question 1 and 2 encourage you to interpret the poem “Bright star!” from two
different approaches: as a stand-alone work and as a piece influenced by the writer’s past and
present experiences. Which approach did you prefer, and why? For information on additional
critical approaches to literature, see the definition of critical theory in the Glossary of Literary
Terms.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: At the beginning of his lecture, Lynn states that Keats’s “Bright star!” is worthy of
comparison to one of Shakespeare’s sonnets. Select a Shakespearean sonnet from your book and
compare it Keats’s poem. In what ways are they similar in style and tone? If you did not know
37
that Keats wrote “Bright star!”, would you suspect Shakespeare could have penned it? Why or
why not?
Question 2: Compare Keats’s poem, “Bright star!” to Robert Frost’s “Choose Something Like a
Star.” In what ways are the sentiments of both poems similar? How are they different? Do the
last lines of each poem, as Lynn suggests, reveal the author’s position and mindset? Explain.
Bobbie Ann Mason, “Shiloh”
Bich Nguyen’s lecture on “Shiloh,” a short story by Bobbie Ann Mason, examines the “K-mart
realism” of Mason’s literary style. Nguyen asks students to consider how Mason’s main
characters—Leroy and Norma Jean—came to the life-crossroads explored in the story and what
might happen after their fateful trip to Shiloh.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What sorts of things does Leroy notice about his wife now that he is unemployed?
What does his sudden interest in these mundane activities and habits reveal about his relationship
with his wife?
Question 2: Nguyen states that Leroy and Norma Jean are at a “crossroads” in their lives. Is this
turning point caused by Leroy’s accident and new role as a “stay at home” husband? Why or
why not?
Question 1: How does Mason craft Leroy and Norma Jean into real people with real lives?
What can you guess about their lives—their past, their present, and their future—based upon
Mason’s characterization of them? Explain.
Question 2: Much of Mason’s fiction draws from her real-life knowledge of rural and suburban
Kentucky and of the working-class people of the postwar South. Why do you think she chose
“Shiloh” as the title for her story? What is the importance of this historic site for the people of
Kentucky? How does it connect to the “K-mart realism” literary style that marks Mason’s short
stories? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: What does Shiloh represent to each character in this story (Norma Jean, Leroy,
Mabel)? Visit the National Park Service’s Web site at [link to: http://www.nps.gov/shil/] for
more information on this historic location. What symbolism does the park have? How does
Mason use the symbolism of the landmark to reflect circumstances unfolding in the story?
Explain.
38
Question 2: Nguyen notes in this part of the lecture that some people interpret Norma Jean’s
frantic waving at Leroy at the story’s end to mean she is about to commit suicide. Do you think
this is a possibility? Respond to this idea with your own viewpoint, referring to what you
understand about the character, her past behavior, as well as her words, actions, and interactions
in the story.
Edna St. Vincent Millay, “Love Is Not All”
Frank Madden explores theme, structure, rhythm and rhyme scheme in his lecture on “Love Is
Not All,” by Edna St. Vincent Millay. Madden encourages students to consider how Millay’s
poem can be modern while still working within the strict form of the Elizabethan sonnet.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Consider the first line of Millay’s poem, “Love is not all.” Is she answering a
question? In what ways do the lines that follow the first point back this first statement? How
does she “answer” the first line?
Question 2: Millay chose to follow the form of a sonnet for this poem. In what ways does this
poem follow the conventions of a sonnet? In what ways does it deviate from popular convention?
For more information about sonnets, see the guide of literary terms found in the Diagnostic
section of this site.
Question 1: Madden observes that this is not really a poem about what love is not, but what love
is. How does Millay demonstrate what love is by explaining what love is not? Explain.
Question 2: Evaluate Millay’s final sentence, “I do not think I would.” What effect did this last
line have on your emotional reaction to the poem? Millay uses the word “think” in this line. To
what extent does the indecisive nature of her words serve as a powerful statement? Would you
prefer something more certain? Why or why not?
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Madden comments that Millay wrote from personal experience. “Much of her poetry
was inspired by her expansive, diverse, and often bitter-sweet love life.” Compare the theme of
“Love Is Not All,” with another Millay love poem, such as “What Lips My Lips Have Kissed,
and Where, and Why.” Based on the spirit of the poems, describe what you think the poet was
feeling when she composed them.
Question 2: Madden refers to two biographies on Edna St. Vincent Millay that have rekindled an
interest in her life and poetry. Read a broader exploration on these biographies by X. J. Kennedy
at The New Criterion [link to: http://www.newcriterion.com/archive/20/sept01/millay.htm] Both
Kennedy and Madden link the poem “First Fig:” to Millay’s biography. Review the poem and
39
write a short essay exploring this idea. At what point in her life was it written? In what ways
does “First Fig:” serve as a mirror for Millay’s life? Explain.
Joyce Carol Oates, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”
“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” is part horror story, part warning, and part
fairy tale—concepts that Porter Shreve discusses in this lecture. Professor Shreve encourages
students to consider the nuances of narrative and the traditions of fable and horror fiction in
Oates’s short story.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What is Connie’s “home” self, and how does it compare to her “not at home” self?
How does this duality, this two-sidedness, come into play in other parts of the story?
Question 2: Shreve begins his lecture by explaining that “Where Are You Going, Where Have
You Been” is about the “vulnerability of girls on the threshold of adolescence.” What elements
of Connie’s character reveal this vulnerability before Arnold Friend targets her in the parking
lot? Cite some examples from the story.
Question 1: Shreve observes that this short story has many elements of traditional fairy tales
such as “Little Red Riding Hood.” Read Charles Perrault’s (1628-1703) original tale of “Little
Red
Riding
Hood”
at
D.L.
Ashliman’s
Web
site
[link
to:
http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/perrault02.html]. Compare the elements of the fairy tale to Oates’s
story. What would the “moral” or lesson be on Oates’s story? How does Connie compare to the
Red Riding Hood? Does Arnold resemble the wolf? Explain.
Question 2: According to Oates, this short story was inspired by a story based on a magazine
article about a serial killer. Read more about the “Pied Piper of Tucson” at the Celestial
Timepiece:
A
Joyce
Carol
Oates
home
page
[link
to:
http://www.usfca.edu/~southerr/smoothtalk.html]
at the University of San Francisco. How much of the real person does Oates capture in her short
story of the serial killer? Does knowing that the story was based on a real person influence your
interpretation of the story? Why or why not?
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Write an essay on the symbolism in this story. For example, what does the house
represent? The threshold? The fancy car? Connie’s family—her sister, mother, father? How does
Oates use symbolism to embellish a story based on a magazine article about a serial killer?
Question 2: Shreve notes that in many ways this story belongs to the horror genre. Visit the
Horror Writers Association Web site and read the essay “What is Horror Fiction?” [link to
40
http://www.horror.org/horror-is.htm]. How does Oates’s story fit into their definition of horror
fiction? In what ways does the changing nature of cultural perceptions of “fear and terror”
influence what we deem to be horror fiction, and what is simply fiction? Explain.
Tim O’Brien, “The Things They Carried”
In this lecture, Porter Shreve examines how Tim O’Brien’s short story, “The Things They
Carried,” employs an untraditional plot line in order to present the “morass” and confusion that
marked the Vietnam experience. Shreve explains why O’Brien’s work is considered by many
critics to be a hallmark of postmodern literature.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Many of the things the soldiers carry are required equipment, but others are carried
by choice. What do the “extra” items—foot powder, photographs, bibles—tell the reader about
the soldier’s personality and emotional state? Explain.
Question 2: Consider O’Brien’s title for this short story. Why do you think he chose to title his
story “The Things They Carried”? What other titles would fit? Why does this particular title
seem particularly appropriate? Explain.
Question 1: Ted Lavender’s death is central to the story, yet is mentioned in an almost
incidental way. Evaluate this use of a non-traditional plot in a short essay. Why does it work for
a story like “The Things They Carried”? Explain.
Question 2: Much of this short story focuses on the things that soldiers carried as individuals.
Explore the concept of unity and individuality in this story. Do you think they are a closely-knit
band of brothers, or are they separate personalities merely co-existing due to difficult
circumstances? How do the things they carry reveal their connection—or lack of connection—to
each other? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: O’Brien states, “In war, the rational faculty begins to diminish…and what takes
over is surrealism, the life of the imagination.” Apply O’Brien’s statement to a character in his
short story. In what ways does the soldier slip into the “surreal”? How do the things he carries
represent the “life of the imagination”? Explain.
Question 2: While O’Brien was himself a soldier in Vietnam, he does not use the pronoun “we”
in his short story, despite his seemingly intimate connections with the characters. Do you
perceive that O’Brien is a soldier in this story? If so, why do you think he prefers to refer to the
group as “they” instead of “we”?
41
Flannery O’Connor, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”
Gloria Henderson discusses the themes of God and redemption in Flannery O’Connor’s short
story, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find.” Henderson provides suggestions on how to analyze and
interpret the meaning of this story, while considering how the background and beliefs of the
author influence much of her work.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Henderson cites a passage from “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” in which the
grandmother is forced to confront good and evil and God. What does the Misfit mean when he
says Jesus “thrown everything off balance,” a statement he makes with a “snarl”? What does his
comment reveal about his character? Explain.
Question 2: In what ways does knowing something about O’Connor’s religious background
help us understand her stories? Explain.
Question 1: In the seconds before her death, the grandmother accepts God’s grace when she
“recognizes” the Misfit as “one of her own children.” How is this recognition a moment of
salvation? Does it make her death less horrible? Explain.
Question 2: Henderson observes that many of O’Connor’s stories feature self-righteous women
who meet tragic ends. Is the grandmother’s smug self-righteousness responsible for her own
death and that of her family? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Despite the violent ending of “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” the story is filled with
humorous moments. Explore the role of humor in this story. Does it make the story’s events
more horrible? Acceptable? Does it help highlight the tragic and situational irony in the story?
Explain.
Question 2: Select one of the characters in the story to analyze. Based on their appearance,
words, and actions, write an essay in which you explore that character and why O’Connor chose
to portray him or her that way.
Wilfred Owen, “Dulce et Decorum Est”
Although only 24 years old when he was killed in battle almost a century ago, Wilfred Owen
remains one of the most continuously published poets of the twentieth century. Sam Gwynn
discusses how Siegfried Sassoon encouraged Owen to write poems about his battlefield
42
experiences—poems that reflected the sympathy of the author for his subjects and the brutal
horrors of war.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Taken from the Roman writer Horace (circa 19 BCE), this Latin phrase was often
quoted at the start of World War I by the British to instill a sense of honor, duty, and glory in
young men going off to war. Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori means “It is sweet and right
to die for your country.” Why does Owen say that this Latin phrase is an “old lie”? How does he
compare the patriotic zeal of this phrase used by people back in England to his real experience
with war? Explain.
Question 2: Soldiers are often presented as idealized heroes full of strength, fortitude, and
resolve. What image of soldiers does Owen present to his readers? How does he describe them?
What analogies does he make to describe how they walk, look, behave? How do his comparisons
create an image for the reader? Explain.
Question 1: At the end of his poem, Owen speaks directly to an unnamed reader, “My friend,
you would not tell with such high zest/to children ardent for some desperate glory, the old
Lie…” Owen himself said that the poem was “triggered” by the children’s author Jessie Pope,
who wrote nationalistic and patriotic books presenting the nobility of the soldier’s life and of
dying for one’s country. “She triggered me off. But the poem isn’t only addressed to her, it’s to
everyone at home.” Read a few of Pope’s war poems at the English Open Access Web site [link
to http://www.stevebrown.clara.net/html/expeience_of_war/pope_the_call.htm]. Write an essay
exploring the two viewpoints—one by a woman many miles from the fronts of war and one by a
man in the trenches. While it is easy to say one view is more compelling, consider the viewpoints
of each writer from their personal perspectives.
Question 2: Owen stated that “My subject is War and the pity of War. The poetry is in the pity.”
Select a war poem by another author, either in your anthology or online. Analyze the poem and
your feelings about it. What motivated the writer? What do you think the poet was trying to
express? Is the poetry indeed “in the pity” of the work? Explain.
Introduction to First World War Poetry Web site at Oxford University
[link to: http://www.oucs.ox.ac.uk/ltg/projects/jtap/tutorials/intro/]
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Gwynn notes that after his hiatus in Craiglockhart Hospital, Owen “turned away
from the dreamy romanticism of his early poems.” Read some other poems by Owen written
before
this
turning
point
in
his
life
at
Old
Poetry.com
[link
to:
http://oldpoetry.com/poetry/31354/] and compare his early work to his more realistic battlefield
poetry. The Wilfred Owen Society [link to: http://www.1914-18.co.uk/woanewsite/] has
archived much of his work.
43
Question 2: Two years after his friend died in World War I, Siegfried Sassoon prepared a
selection of his poems for publication. Review this volume at Pennsylvania State University
professor Jim Manis’s Web site [link to: http://www.hn.psu.edu/faculty/jmanis/owen/WilfredOwen-Poems.pdf]. In his preface, Sassoon wrote of Owen, “He never wrote his poems (as so
many war-poets did) to make the effect of a personal gesture. He pitied others; he did not pity
himself.” In what ways does Dulce et Decorum Est” reinforce Sassoon’s observation of Owen’s
character? Explain.
Sylvia Plath, “Lady Lazarus”
While drawn from the poet’s own life, “Lady Lazarus” by Sylvia Plath is a dramatic monologue
that is still very much a fictional creation of the writer. April Lindner helps students separate the
biographical influences Plath brought to “Lady Lazarus” from the fictional, almost mythic
persona of poem’s speaker. Lindner also encourages students to reflect on the symbolism Plath
uses, and demonstrates how to follow the poem’s complicated twists and turns.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What “things” does the poet compare herself to? Why do you think she chooses
these specific things (a paperweight, a seashell, etc.) to describe herself? Explain.
Question 2: In what ways is the speaker’s “death” (“I have nine times to die. This is Number
Three.”) a performance? What does she ask of her “audience”? Who is her audience? How does
she define herself as a “performer”?
Answer 2: Reviewing the poem line by line, the reader can identify many references to the
speaker’s perspective of her suicide attempt as a display—almost a sideshow act. She first
describes herself as objects made for display from the Holocaust (“Nazi lampshade,” “a
paperweight”—things created from the bodies of Jews by the Nazis). She asks her audience “do I
terrify?” She then assumes the role of a sideshow barker, calling to “Gentlemen, ladies,” the
“peanut crunching crowd,” to see her “strip tease.” She invites the audience to view her “art”
(dying), in which she makes a “theatrical comeback,” seemingly defying death like a magician or
an escape artist. A gifted performer, she imagines that the crowd will desire a “piece of my hair
or my clothes.”
Question 1: Lindner notes that, at the age of thirty, Plath committed suicide. Suffering from
mental illness, she had tried to commit suicide when she was younger as well. Does knowing this
information about the poet influence how you interpret “Lady Lazarus?” Why or why not?
Question 2: What is the significance of the references Plath makes to Nazi Germany? Why do
you think she chooses to make such references? Explain.
44
Question 3: At the close of this part of Lindner’s lecture, she observes that Plath’s poem has a
fine balance “between control and hysteria.” Identify parts of the poem that exemplify each side
of this balance.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Write a dramatic monologue of your own, either in poetry or prose, in the voice of a
character who isn’t you. Try to imagine what that character’s thoughts, feelings, and motivations
are. Is he or she angry, confused, happy, or perplexed? Is he or she a complicated personality—
saying one thing but really meaning another? Remember to make, as Lindner suggests, your
character “large than life.”
Question 2: Research more about Sylvia Plath’s life and work at the Poets.org Web site [link to:
http://www.poets.org/poets/poets.cfm?45442B7C000C0704]. After reading her biography and
reviewing some of the information from the related links, connect your research to your own
analysis of “Lady Lazarus.” While you may refer to points Lindner raises in her lecture, present
your own viewpoints and interpretations of this powerful poem.
Edgar Allan Poe, “Ligeia”
In this lecture, Suzanne Disheroon-Green examines concepts of female beauty and sexuality in
Edgar Allan Poe’s “Ligeia.”
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: How does the narrator describe Ligeia? What makes her mysterious? In what ways
does she represent a typical character common to Poe’s literary style?
Question 2: The narrator observes of Ligeia, “…her features were not of that regular mould
which we have been falsely taught to worship in the classical labors of the heathen.” To what
“false worship” is he referring? Read more about the Victorian ideal of beauty at the “Texts
about the Corset” Web site [link to: http://www.corsets.de/node73.html]. How does the
description of Ligeia compare to the more conventional view of beauty? What assumptions
might Victorian men make of her “dark beauty”?
Question 1: Disheroon-Green explains that Poe was “intrigued with death.” Explore the concept
of death in this story. Who dies in the story and how? What does the death of each woman
(Ligeia and Rowena) represent to the narrator?
Question 2: At the end of this part of her lecture, Disheroon-Green observes that the reader is
left to question the narrator’s perception of Ligeia’s return. Is he mad? Experiencing a drug-
45
induced hallucination? Or has Ligeia returned? What do you think? Support your viewpoint with
references from the story.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Write an essay exploring the concepts of lightness and darkness in Poe’s literature
as it connects to Victorian conventions of good, evil, purity, and sensuality. In addition to
“Ligeia,” select another poem or short story by Poe to support your argument.
Question 2: Pick at least three short stories written before 1900 that feature women as main
characters. Summarize the physical descriptions of the women in each work. How does the
personality of the woman compare to her physical description? What is her moral positioning in
the story? For example, is she an icon of virtue, or a woman of sin? Then, write a short essay
discussing the connection between the physical person and the moral character of women in pretwentieth century literature.
Edwin Arlington Robinson, “Richard Cory”
In this lecture, Diane Thiel discusses how Edwin Arlington Robinson’s poem “Richard Cory”
manipulates and shocks readers by twisting their expectations. Thiel explains how Robinson’s
almost modernist style, which broke from traditional “flowery” Victorian poetic modes,
influenced many twentieth-century poets, most notably Robert Frost and James Wright.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Who is the narrator of “Richard Cory”? Why is it important that we “view” Richard
Cory’s suicide from the eyes of the narrator? Explain.
Question 2: How do the people who “worked” contrast with the man named Richard Cory? How
do the people describe him? What do you think they thought of him? Does the poem imply that
the “pavement” people learn anything from Cory’s suicide? Explain.
Question 1: How do the first fourteen lines of Robinson’s poem serve to set up the final two?
Write an essay evaluating how Robinson builds up our image of Richard Cory only to shatter it
with the final two lines of the poem.
Question 2: What do you think the reader is supposed to think after reading this poem? Does the
poem have the same impact with a second reading? Does it matter that we don’t know exactly
why Richard Cory puts a bullet through his head? Explain.
46
Part 3: Writing
Question 1:
Thiel notes that much of Robinson’s work is known for a “dark
pessimism…suicide, addiction, and other such problems.” Read a few more poems by Robinson
in your book or online [link to: http://www.bartleby.com/233]. Pick at least two additional poems
that you consider “dark” and summarize their themes.
Question 2: At the end of this section of her lecture, Thiel observes that “Robinson helped
define a new era of poetry” with his plainspoken style. Read a few poems by one of the other
poets she cites, Frost or Wright. What influences from Robinson’s style can you identify in either
poet’s work? Explain.
Mary Jo Salter, “Welcome to Hiroshima”
April Lindner guides students through the poetic landscape of “Welcome to Hiroshima,” by
Mary Jo Salter. This landscape juxtaposes the fresh new Hiroshima that greets the poem’s
narrator at the beginning of the poem with the shard of glass from a war victim on display at the
Peace Museum. Lindner encourages students to consider the imagery, ideas, and symbolism in
Salter’s poem.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: In what ways is this poem a narrative? What observations does the poet make about
Hiroshima? What does she see? What does she chose to relate? Explain.
Question 2: Consider the imagery used in this poem: “sunny coffee shops,” “a pancake
sandwich,” a “maraschino cherry,” a Toshiba billboard. How do the images at the beginning of
the poem compare to the images at the end: “a shard” of bomb, a child’s wristwatch, “death
gummed on death.” How do these images juxtapose the new Hiroshima with the historical one?
Explain.
Question 3: What is the “channel silent in the TV of the brain” to which Salter refers in line four
of her poem? Explain.
Answer 3: The images we associate with Hiroshima—burned bodies, a leveled, devastated city,
children without parents suffering from radiation burns—most people know from television
programs aired during high-school history classes. Few people associate Hiroshima with
anything but the dropping of the atomic bomb on August 6, 1945. We don’t think of Hiroshima
as a city that has flourished in the decades following WWII, a city that, as Salter describes, is
clean and orderly, with a Peace Park marking the epicenter of the bomb’s impact. For a
description of the damage done by the A-bomb dropped on Hiroshima during World War II, visit
the Web site of the Peace Museum (described in this poem) at [link to:
http://www.pcf.city.hiroshima.jp/peacesite/English/Stage1/S1-5E.html].
47
Question 1: When you think of Hiroshima, what do you think of? Do you think, as the poet
seems to, that the “normalcy” of Hiroshima is distressing? Why or why not? Explain.
Question 2: In your opinion, does Salter’s poem “do justice” to history? What does it set out to
do? Do you think she is successful in her attempt to present the history and modern experience of
Hiroshima through the artistic medium of poetry?
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Lindner asks to consider a time when you felt “other.” Why is Salter the “other” in
this poem? Write about a time when you felt like you were “other.”
Question 2: Hiroshima, for many of us, remains frozen in “the TV of the brain” as a place of
devastation and destruction, representing a moment that changed the world forever. While the
tragedy of September 11, 2001 was smaller in magnitude, it will remain a frozen moment for
many people for years to come. Write an essay exploring the artistic ways we have responded to
this event. Refer to the poem on September 11 by poet laureate Billy Collins and that of other
artists
such
as
Ani
DiFranco’s
poem,
“self
evident.”
[link
to:
http://www.righteousbabe.com/ani/poem.asp].
William Shakespeare, Hamlet
Focusing on the famous “To Be or Not To Be” soliloquy delivered by Hamlet, Frank Madden
discusses the connections between how an actor “plays” a character and how we interpret the
character in the broader context of the play. Many great actors have interpreted and performed
this soliloquy in vastly different ways—melancholy, angry, energetic, even playful. Madden asks
students to think about how their own interpretation of the character of Hamlet and of the play
itself depend on their ability to link actor, audience, and playwright.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Line by line, identify all of the words in Hamlet’s speech that you did not
understand, or words that have shifted in meaning since Shakespeare’s time, such as “rub” and
“respect”. Remember to review the notes in your textbook. Replace the obsolete or outdated
words with modern ones and review the speech. Does the impact of Hamlet’s speech change
with modern words? In production, do you think it would be better to update the words, or rely
upon the actor to convey the meaning of the original text through theatrical skills such as tone,
gesture, expression, inflection, etc.? Explain.
Question 2: In this speech, Hamlet questions his resolve and courage to continue his vow to
avenge his father’s murder. Based upon your interpretation of the speech, how would you “play”
the character? Depressed? Angry? Scared? Uncertain? Bitter? Sarcastic? Explain.
48
Question 1: Madden explains that no two Hamlets are identical in the great performances of this
play. From Laurence Olivier to Kenneth Branagh, each actor interprets and plays the part
differently. Compare two interpretations of this soliloquy—Olivier (1948), Jacobi (1980),
Gibson (1990), Branagh (1996)—and explain how each influences our opinion of the young
Danish prince and what motivates him.
Question 2: Select a character from Hamlet—Ophelia, Claudius, Gertrude, Polonius, even
Hamlet himself—and answer some of the questions Madden cites about characterization from an
actor’s point of view, from the initial “Who is she/he?” to “Who am I?”, “When is this occurring
in my life?”, and “Why am I here?” Consider how asking these questions helps you understand
the play on a different level.
Answer 2: As you approach this question, consider everything you know about the character—
what his or her station is in life, where he or she lives, and when. How old is the character—what
sorts of things drive people at that age? Remember that it is easy to judge characters, but when
you try to get under their skins—to see things from their perspective—your opinion of their
actions and motivations may change. For example, you might find Gertrude’s complacency in
her husband’s murder to mean she is of the lowest moral fiber, a woman deserving of our scorn,
and a woman who gets what she deserves for her treachery. But what if you begin to see her as a
scared pawn in a complicated political plot? Or as a middle-aged woman, fearful of the loss of
her beauty and influence, who seizes desperately at whatever chance throws her way? Or perhaps
she is a woman who just makes bad choices but really has a good heart—perhaps like someone
you know in real life. When we allow ourselves to see characters as real people with complicated
personalities—not unlike our own—we can appreciate why Shakespeare’s plays have stood the
test of time as some of the greatest works ever written.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: As Madden explains, T.S. Eliot’s essay “Hamlet and His Problems” [link to:
http://www.bartleby.com/200/sw9.html ] argues that Shakespeare’s Hamlet, as a character
superimposed on “cruder” earlier versions of the play by other playwrights, lacks “objective
correlative.” In short, the Hamlet play we see lacks the external facts and background necessary
for us to understand why the character Hamlet acts and behaves the way he does. Write an essay
exploring this idea. Do you think that something is missing from the play to explain Hamlet’s
behavior? If so, what? If not, explain why you think the play stands perfectly well on its own.
Question 2: Madden cites two other critics, Harold Bloom [link to:
http://edition.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/books/05/07/bloom.hamlet/] and Helen Vendler, who
argue that Hamlet is indeed an artistic success. Vendler goes so far as to say Hamlet is the
greatest
poem
of
the
last
millennium
[link
to:
http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/millennium/m1/vendler.html]. Read the opinions of
either one of these critics and write an essay in which you agree or disagree—in whole in part—
with their points. Remember to express your own point of view in your essay.
49
William Shakespeare, The Theme of Love in Sonnets
In this lecture, Sylvan Barnet discusses the theme of love in Shakespeare’s sonnets. Barnet
explores how great writers can indeed write about things imagined, but not actually experienced.
Perhaps not even intended for publication, Shakespeare’s sonnets reveal how great lyric poetry
seems highly personal, but need not be. Barnet also provides suggestions for students on how to
think and write about sonnets.
Part I Rea din g
Question 1: Barnet observes that “a great writer presumably can write a poem, say, about being
rejected by a lover, even if he has never been rejected.” Do you agree with this presumption?
Can you effectively write about something you have never experienced, especially something
deeply emotional? Explain.
Question 2: Barnet notes that many of the first 126 sonnets are clearly addressed to a youth
whom Shakespeare addresses as “sweet boy” (Sonnet 108) and “fair youth” (Sonnet 126). These
poems may or may not be homoerotic; possibly they represent a Renaissance way of talking
about male friendship—“male bonding,” we might now say—that today is mistakenly seen as
erotic. (Sonnet 20 seems explicitly—and coarsely—to indicate that the poet was heterosexual.)
Some of these poems, which are among the most famous love poems in English, are often read at
weddings, e.g. Sonnet 116 (“Let me not to the marriage of true minds / Admit impediments”).
Read this poem, and, on the assumption that it is addressed to a male consider whether you think
it is erotic, and, further, whether you might wish to have it read at your wedding.
Question 1: Select two or more sonnets that are written to Shakespeare’s “Dark Lady” (Sonnets
127 to 152) from your book or online. Based on his description of the Dark Lady in these
sonnets, what can we tell about his feelings for her? Do you think she is a real person? Explain.
Question 2: Make a list of the themes Barnet mentions in this part of the lecture. Read four
sonnets not discussed here and list the themes you find. Compare the two lists. How does an
understanding of the common themes enhance your appreciation of the sonnets? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Compare Sonnet 130 to some other, more traditional sonnets and poems by
Shakespeare. Try http://www.bartleby.com/70/5207.html,
http://www.bartelby.com/70/50054.html,
http://www.bartelby.com/70/50018.html, or
http://www.bartelby.com/70/50104.html for some ideas.
Question 2: Write your own sonnet in honor of someone or something in the “spirit” of Sonnet
130. Drawing from points Barnet makes in his lecture about the “clichés” usually employed,
craft your own poem. Refer to your book for information on the structure or try this site.
50
William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream
In this lecture, Mike Greenwald explores the multiple plots and time-tested appeal of William
Shakespeare’s comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Greenwald focuses on why audiences are
still drawn into the themes and characters of this particular play. What elements of this comedy
account for its universal popularity?
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Theseus tries to make sense of the fantasy experience that the young lovers
experienced in the woods in the first scene of Act V. In what ways does A Midsummer Night’s
Dream rely upon the imagination of both the playwright and the audience? Explain.
Question 2: What does Theseus mean when he says, “The lunatic, the lover and the poet/
Are of imagination all compact”? Explain.
Question 3: As readers, and therefore the audience of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, are we
supposed to accept Theseus’s reasoning that the night has been the product of emotion-driven
fantasy? Why or why not?
Question 1: Greenwald identifies four plots running concurrently in A Midsummer Night’s
Dream. Pick one of the themes he cites and explain why it still appeals to audiences 400 years
after the play was written.
Question 2: As Greenwald notes, a central idea in A Midsummer Night’s Dream is the concept
of watching and being watched. Write a short essay exploring this idea in the play. Is there
significance in who controls the “gaze”? Is the audience the most “all knowing” participant in
the play, or is it something or someone else? Explain.
Question 3: The spirit world and the supernatural factor heavily in A Midsummer Night’s
Dream. Read more about what Elizabethans believed about magic and the spirit world at the Enotes Web site [link to: http://www.allshakespeare.com/shakespeare/1498/]. What challenges do
modern audiences pose for directors and actors of this play in the absence of supernatural
beliefs? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: In Part III of his lecture, Greenwald asks, “Does Bottom really need to wear a mask
to show that he behaves like an ass?” Write an essay answering his question providing examples
from the play illustrating that Bottom is indeed a “foolish ass.” Alternatively, you could set out
to prove Bottom is not as foolish as we suppose.
51
Question 2: Is there a “lesson” to be learned from A Midsummer Night’s Dream? What do the
characters learn in the play? What does the audience learn? Explore the lessons of this play in an
essay, referring to specific themes and ideas expressed in the play.
William Shakespeare, Sonnet 73
Sylvan Barnet walks students step-by-step through an analysis of Shakespeare’s Sonnet 73.
Barnet demonstrates how tone, sound, imagery, stress, and the structure of the quatrains all
merge to present an emotional drama within the poem.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Barnet notes that while most people would agree that Sonnet 73 is about love,
certain aspects of how Shakespeare approaches the idea and nature of love in this sonnet make it
“more memorable.” Explore this idea. What message about love is Shakespeare conveying in
this sonnet? What makes his message unique from other poems about love? Explain.
Question 2: What is the tone of Sonnet 73? Does it change from quatrain to quatrain, or does it
remain constant? Explain.
Question 1: What references to time exist in Sonnet 12? How do these references reinforce the
tone, meaning, and theme of the poem? Explain.
Question 2: Apply Barnet’s “formula” for following the plot of either Sonnet 73 or Sonnet 12
(“you see A…you see B…therefore C…in summary D”). What plot unfolds in either sonnet
following this formula? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Is this a poem about love? Death? Both? Write an essay about the theme of this
poem. Do you think different readers would interpret this poem differently? If so, what factors
would influence their interpretation? Explain.
Question 2: Read Sonnet 73 aloud several times slowly and thoughtfully. Where do you
naturally pause? What words do you instinctually emphasize? What are the effects of certain
sounds, stresses, and pauses on how we “feel” this poem and the poet’s meaning? Write an essay
exploring the way stresses, pauses, and alliterative sounds all contribute to the theme and tone of
the sonnet. If you wish, pick another Shakespearean sonnet from your book to analyze.
Sophocles, Oedipus the King
52
X.J. Kennedy describes the Athenian stage and how “Oedipus the King” would have been
originally performed. What did the play “mean” to ancient audiences? What would they have
known about the story, and what questions does Sophocles encourage us to think about?
Kennedy provides many suggestions for further writing while offering interesting alternative
interpretations to this ancient work.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: What does the old priest tell Oedipus has happened to the city of Thebes? Why is it
important for the audience to know this information?
Answer 1: In his appeal to Oedipus, the old priest relates the lamentable state of Thebes. Every
man in Thebes, from the very young to the old and weak, have gathered before the temples of
Athena and Apollo to beg the gods for salvation. The crops have withered in the fields, livestock
is sick, women and children are dying, and a plague has stricken the city. The priest’s monologue
gives the audience the time and place of the play’s action. He relates a moment in time in a series
of events that the audience would have known.
Question 2: How does the old priest’s speech paint a picture for the audience? Why doesn’t he
simply begin by stating, “Oedipus, Thebes is a mess. Help us.”?
Answer 2: Ancient Greek theater depended on conveying visual information that would not have
been depicted on the stage. Unlike a modern stage, there were no elaborate sets, and few actors.
The priest must describe for the audience the scene—the men are gathered and on their knees,
“massing the squares” and “clinging” to altars. The sea churns red. Lightening scars the sky. He
describes things that the audience cannot actually see, but can imagine.
Question 1: In what ways are ancient Greek theaters different from modern ones? For example,
where did the audience sit, and how far away were they from the stage?
Answer 1: In general, ancient Greek audiences sat much closer to the actors and chorus. Most
modern stages have a wide gap between the actors and the audience, especially in larger theatres.
Could the closeness between the actors and the audience increase the intensity of the
performance? Do you think that modern theaters lose some of the dramatic effect because of the
gap between the stage and the audience?
Question 2: Based on what you see in the photos of the Theater of Dionysus in Athens and the
theater in Dodona, do you think modern plays could be staged in such settings? Why or why not?
Answer 2: Depending on the play, it is possible to perform modern productions in ancient-style
theaters. Some directors have tried to do this by reducing the props and scenery in modern
performances in favor of “minimalist” productions. However, the playwright would need to be
aware that props and stage sets were not available to convey information. The playwright may
need to incorporate more detail, and add a narrator to “set the stage” for the audience. The
53
director must be more attuned to telling the audience what it needs to know to understand the
action of the play. Moreover, members of the audience must be open to using their imaginations
actively. Do you think modern audiences and playwrights would make such concessions in
today’s theatrical productions?
Alternative Question 2: Take a look at these photographs of ancient Greek theaters. Based on
what you see in the photos of the Theater of Dionysus in Athens and the theater in Epidauros, do
you think modern plays could be staged in such settings? Why or why not?
•
The
Theater
of
Dionysus
in
Athens:
[link
http://rubens.anu.edu.au/htdocs/laserdisk/classical/0001/108.JPG]
hosted
by
Australian National University.
•
Aerial view of the theater at Epidauros: [link to http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgibin/image?lookup=Perseus:image:1990.30.0031] hosted by the Perseus Digital Library at
Tufts University.
to
the
Answer 2: Depending on the play, it is possible to perform modern productions in ancient-style
theaters. Some directors have tried to do this by reducing the props and scenery in modern
performances in favor of “minimalist” productions. However, the playwright would need to be
aware that props and stage sets were not available to convey information. The playwright may
need to incorporate more detail, and add a narrator to “set the stage” for the audience. The
director must be more attuned to telling the audience what it needs to know to understand the
action of the play. Moreover, members of the audience must be open to using their imaginations
actively. Do you think modern audiences and playwrights would make such concessions in
today’s theatrical productions?
Question 3: Kennedy explains that ancient Greek productions were done “in the round,” with the
audience sitting on all sides of the central stage. How do you think the old priest’s speech would
have been delivered to an audience sitting this way? Describe how it might have looked.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Kennedy notes that the tragedy of Oedipus, while known to the audience through
storytelling, was first performed on stage a few years after Athens had suffered a plague. How
might have the real events of Athens influenced the audience’s reception of the fictional play of
Oedipus?
Answer 1: The audience would have likely connected more deeply with the events depicted on
stage and perhaps sympathized with Oedipus on a more personal level. This connection could
influence their interpretation of the play—while modern viewers may feel that Oedipus was
responsible for his downfall through his own actions, the Athenian audience may have felt
differently, believing him to be a victim of fate or of circumstances beyond his control.
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Question 2: What is the “Oedipus complex”? Do you think that the tragedy of Oedipus
accurately reflects this controversial theory? Do you think ancient audiences would have
believed it did, had they known of it? Explain.
Answer 2: The Oedipus complex describes the impulse of very young boys to express their love
of their mothers and resent their fathers. Many little boys have stated that they wish to marry
their mothers, but grow out of this stage by the end of their preschool years. Does the Oedipus
complex accurately describe Oedipus’ situation? While there are different answers to this
question, some points to consider include the fact that Oedipus did not know that Iocasta was, in
fact, his mother. He did not know that the man he killed on his journey was his father. He
believed his father and mother were back at home in kingdom he fled. Does this influence our
viewpoints of the question, or are there deeper issues to consider?
Question 3: Could the act of translating Oedipus the King influence how we interpret this play
today? Compare the opening speech of the high priest in the first part of this lesson to the
opening speech translated in the 1909 edition of the Harvard Classics hosted by Bartleby.com
[link to http://www.bartleby.com/8/5/1.html]. How are they different? Does your interpretation
of the speech in part one change after reading this version? Do you prefer one translation to
another? Explain.
Alice Walker, “Everyday Use”
In this lecture on Alice Walker’s short story “Everyday Use,” Gloria Henderson explores some
of the connections between the author’s life and some of the ideas she suggests in the story.
Understanding Walker’s life and perspective, Henderson explains, helps us interpret how she
feels about some of the characters in this story and the circumstances that inspired their creation.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: In “Everyday Use,” Walker presents two very different perceptions of heritage and
values as narrated through the viewpoint of a mother observing her two daughters. How does she
describe each child? How do the daughters act as foils to one another? What values does each
represent, and how does Walker lead us to prefer one daughter to another? Explain.
Question 2: How does the narrator describe herself? Do you think she is proud? Humble?
Ashamed? Does her view of herself and of her daughter Maggie change over the course of Dee’s
visit? Explain.
Question 1: Henderson observes that Walker’s story poses an important question, “how can we
best both honor and preserve our heritage?” Is it through the careful safeguarding of artifacts,
such as the quilts in the story, or the passing of memories of these artifacts? (Note that Maggie
says she will remember her grandmother with or without the quilts.) View some quilts by
African-American women on Dr. Maude Wahlman’s Web site at the University of MissouriKansas City [link to: http://iml.umkc.edu/art/faculty/wahlman/quilters.html]. Most readers agree
55
that Maggie is the more deserving of the daughters. However, would the quilts be safer for
posterity with Dee? What do you think?
Question 2: When offered the quilts before she left for college, Dee refused them, ashamed to
own such “old fashioned” items. Upon her return, Dee covets the folk-art objects that comprise
the everyday reality for her mother and sister. What accounts for Dee’s change of heart? Has she
learned to appreciate her mother and her heritage? Explain.
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: The narrator indicates that she has not had much of an education, and that she is a
strong, mannish, earthy woman. Do you think she understands Dee and her motives for looting
the house of its “valuables”? What does she think of Dee’s new name? Of the gentleman who
accompanies Dee? Is the narrator really as ignorant as she claims, or is she shrewder than she lets
on? Write an essay exploring the character of the mother in this story.
Question 2: As Henderson suggests, write an essay exploring how this story might be different if
it were written from the point of view of one of the daughters.
Question 3: What is your own heritage, and how do you preserve it? Are you proud of your
family and where you came from? Can you empathize with Dee’s character, who wishes to
preserve the things of her heritage, but who is ashamed of her family? Do you accept all aspects
of your heritage—family, history, culture, etc., as a part of who you are? Or has time obscured
your history? Explain.
Eudora Welty, “Why I Live at the P.O.”
In this lecture, Suzanne Disheroon-Green discusses Welty’s short story, “Why I Live at the
P.O.”, and how this work embodies the most significant characteristics of traditional southern
narratives, including strong sense of place, focus on family, emphasis on folk traditions, and use
of speech and dialect.
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: In this passage, Sister relates how Stella-Rondo tries to turn Papa-Daddy against her
by telling him that Sister has implied Papa-Daddy should cut his beard. How reliable do you
think Sister’s recounting of the incident is? Do you think Stella-Rondo commits a grave
injustice? Explain.
Question 2: What is the tone of this passage? Can you tell based upon Sister’s recounting of the
incident how she feels about Stella-Rondo’s behavior? About how Papa-Daddy reacts? About
her mother and other relatives? Explain.
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Question 1: Disheroon-Green points out that “Why I Live at the P.O.” is told only from Sister’s
point of view. In your opinion, is Sister a reliable narrator? Why or why not?
Question 2: What is the narrator’s objective in telling this story? Who is her audience? Does she
wish to simply explain why she lives at the post office to her audience? Is her goal to expose
Stella-Rondo’s injustice? To garner sympathy from her listeners? Explain.
Question 3: As the narrator, Sister makes many asides to create a relationship with her audience
(the reader). Identify some of these asides in which she breaks from her narrative and explain
what her goal might be in making them. Here are few examples to get you started:
“So the first thing Stella-Rondo did at the table was turn Papa-Daddy against me.”
“While she was married she got this peculiar idea that it’s cooler with the windows shut
and locked.”
“ Do you remember who it was who really said that?”
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: Disheroon-Green explains that creating “a sense of place” was very important to
Welty. Write an essay exploring how Welty presents this “sense of place” in “Why I Live at the
P.O.” Include in your exploration places that are mentioned but are not where the story occurs.
Question 2: Read more about Eudora Welty and her style online at the Mississippi Writer’s
Page [link to: http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/english/ms-writers/dir/welty_eudora/]. How did
Welty’s upbringing influence her fiction? In what ways is “Why I Live at the P.O.” a work of
“southern fiction”? What are the characteristics of southern fiction? How is it unique from other
types of fiction?
William Butler Yeats, “The Lake Isle of Innisfree”
In this lecture, X.J. Kennedy discusses the biography, mentality, and personal background of
William Butler Yeats, and how Yeats’s life may have influenced his poem “The Lake Isle of
Innisfree.” Kennedy explores the idea of escape in this poem, as well as other reoccurring themes
in Yeats’s poems “Sailing to Byzantium” and “Who Goes With Fergus?”
Part 1: Reading
Question 1: Kennedy notes that “The Lake Isle of Innisfree” is one of his favorite poems. What
is your reaction to this poem? How does it make you feel? Explain.
Question 2: What does Yeats say he will do when he goes to Innisfree? What do you think is the
significance of the things he will do and have there? Is he likely to really go to Innisfree and
build a cabin and live there?
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Answer 2: It seems as if Yeats is dreaming in this poem—he longs for the simple life he believes
he would have on Innisfree, with a small cabin, a garden, and bee-hives. He describes what he
will do, revealing that his poem expresses a desire, not a reality. Living on Innisfree is sometime
in the future. By the end of the poem, he is at Innisfree in his mind. We know that he is not really
there, hearing the lake water, or standing on the roadway, because he feels these things “in the
deep heart’s core.”
Question 1: Kennedy notes that Yeats “found himself hating the city and longing for the
peaceful west of Ireland.” In what ways does the poem reveal the feelings of the poet? Can you
recall a similar longing for a place that seemed far away? How did your imagination influence
your feelings about the place?
Question 2: Read Yeats’s poem “Sailing to Byzantium” in your textbook and connect some of
the imagery in the poem to the points Kennedy makes in his lecture on Byzantine art. How does
the poem reflect this art?
Question 3: Kennedy explains that Yeats was fascinated with traditional Irish tales. There was a
story associated with the island of Innisfree that Yeats would have known. Yeats scholar Russel
K. Alspach recounts the legend of Innisfree in his book, Yeats and Innisfree (1965). Alspach
writes, “According to the legend there grew on a tree in the island a luscious fruit…exclusively
reserved for the use of the gods who had a dragon there to guard it. The daughter of the chief of
the island asked her lover, named Free, to get her some [of the fruit]. Free defeated the dragon,
but he ate of the fruit and died of its virtue after returning to his sweetheart and telling her his
story. Thereupon she too ate of the fruit and fell dead across his body.” Does this legend
influence how we read the Yeats poem?
Part 3: Writing
Question 1: In this part of his lecture, Kennedy expresses that he believes that as Yeats grew
older, his poetry improved. Pick a poem from early in Yeats’s career and one from later in his
life and compare them. In your comparison, consider the subject matter Yeats chose to write
about and what it might reveal about his feelings at the time. If possible, connect your
observations to points Kennedy makes about Yeats’s life.
Question 2: Kennedy urges students to read Yeats’s poems aloud to hear how they deliberately
“stagger” or “hollowly clunk.” Select a few poems by Yeats and read them aloud. Try to identify
areas where it seems like Yeats deliberately “roughened” the poem to give it interest. For more
poems, visit the University of Maryland Library database on Yeats [link to
http://www.lib.umd.edu/ETC/ReadingRoom/Poetry/Yeats/].
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WRITING AND RESEARCH: TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES
From formulating an original idea to citing sources, this section of MyLiteratureLab offers
students step-by-step guidance for writing powerful critical essays and research papers. This
section of the site can reinforce and augment the writing coverage in your text. Below is a brief
description of what each section covers.
Overview
Writing and Research contains nine main sections. Six are discussed here, while we cover
Exchange, Research Navigator, and Avoiding Plagiarism in more detail below.
From Idea to Writing facilitates effective writing by providing useful information on both the
writing process and writing about literature, including such key topics as invention, planning,
and strategies for organizing, drafting, and revising. Writing the Research Paper offers
comprehensive instruction for writing research papers, including finding a topic, evaluating
sources, taking notes, tips for summarizing, developing a thesis, suggestions for organizing the
paper, choosing a pattern of development, guidance for writing introductions and conclusions,
and comprehensive MLA documentation. A dozen Student Papers are integrated throughout,
providing helpful models of a variety of critical essays and the research paper. Comprehensive
coverage of MLA Documentation provides numerous models of all types for citing a range of
sources, from interviews to periodicals to electronic sources. A Literature Timeline offers a
chronological overview of major literary works and historical events, from the Pre-historic
migration to the Americas, to the inception of the Internet. Access to our Tutor Center is
provided free of charge with your subscription to MyLiteratureLab. The Tutor Center gives your
students help with reviewing papers for organization, flow, argument, and consistent grammar
errors. Students can contact tutors toll-free via phone, e-mail, Web access, or fax, often at times
when your campus writing center is not available.
Using Exchange
Exchange, Pearson’s powerful new interactive tool, allows students to comment on each other’s
drafts and instructors to review and grade papers—all online. More information about Exchange
can be found in the Instructor Resources section of the MyLiteratureLab Web site. Please visit
the Instructor Resources area to learn about creating and administering Exchange as part of your
teaching apparatus. Highlights of Exchange include the ability to:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
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Quickly and easily add comments at the word, sentence, paragraph, or paper level.
Save and re-use your favorite comments.
Help students identify and overcome common errors through links to practice exercises
and an online handbook.
Decide how many students are in each group.
Assign students by name, or create random groups.
Let all students see comments, or only the author and instructor.
Allow students to post comments anonymously.
And more!
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Exploring Research Navigator
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Pearson’s Research Navigator is designed to help students develop their rhetorical knowledge,
critical skills, understanding of processes, and knowledge of conventions for research writing.
Research Navigator is the easiest way for students to start a research assignment or research
paper. Complete with extensive help on the research process and four exclusive databases of
credible and reliable source material (EBSCO Academic Journal and Abstract Database, New
York Times Search by Subject™ Archive, “Best of the Web” Link Library, and the Financial
Times archives), Research Navigator helps students quickly and efficiently make the most of
their research time.
Here is a brief overview of the databases available to students who use Research Navigator:
•
The EBSCO Academic Journal and Abstract Database, organized by subject, contains
over 100 of the leading academic journals per discipline, including literature. Instructors
and students can search the online journals by keyword, topic, or multiple topics. Articles
include abstract and citation information and can be cut, pasted, e-mailed, or saved for
later use. The EBSCO database includes the MLA International Bibliography,
MagillOnLiterature Plus, and Academic Search Premier.
•
The New York Times Search by Subject™ Archive is organized by academic subject
and searchable by keyword or multiple keywords. Instructors and students can view fulltext articles from the world’s leading journalists from The New York Times. The New
York Times Search by Subject™ Archive is available exclusively to instructors and
students through Research Navigator.
•
Link Library, organized by subject, offers editorially selected “best of the Web” sites.
Link Libraries are continually scanned and kept up to date providing the most relevant
and accurate links for research assignments. Subjects in the Link Library include
American Literature, British Literature, Children’s Literature, and World Literature.
•
FT.com provides access to a wealth of business-related information from the Financial
Times.
In addition to the databases, Research Navigator provides students with help in understanding
the research process itself. The areas explored include:
•
The Research Process: This area leads students step-by-step through the process of
selecting a topic, gathering information, and developing a research paper.
•
Finding Sources: This area provides access to the site’s four databases on one page.
•
Using Your Library: This area explores the resources available through libraries and
provides library guides to 31 core disciplines. Each library guide includes an overview of
major databases and online journals, key associations and newsgroups, and suggestions
for further research.
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•
Start Writing: This area guides students through the writing process itself, from draft to
finished paper.
•
End Notes and Bibliography: This area provides clear and authoritative guidance about
documenting sources and formatting notes and bibliographies according to a variety of
styles.
You may want to provide class time for exploring this rich resource, if you have access to a
computer lab, or you may want to encourage your students to explore on their own by assigning
a Web-based activity.
The Research Process
From Research Navigator’s homepage, students have easy access to all of the site’s main
features, including a quick route to the databases of source content. If your students are new to
the research process, however, you may want to have them start by browsing The Research
Process, located in the upper right-hand section of the homepage. Here students will find
extensive help on all aspects of the research process including:
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•
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Overview of the research process
Planning your research assignment
Finding a topic
Creating effective notes
Research paper paradigms
Finding source material
Avoiding plagiarism
Summary of the research process
Selecting a topic is the first and often most difficult step for students completing a research
assignment or research paper. In the tutorial for this topic, Research Navigator assists students
with the process of finding an appropriate topic to research.
Once students have selected and narrowed down their research topic, they are ready to take on
the serious task of gathering data. With academic research projects, student researchers quickly
find out that some leads turn out to be dead ends, while other leads provide only trivial
information. Some research yields repetitive results, but a recursive pattern does develop; that is,
students will go back and forth from reading, to searching indexes, the Internet, the library and
back again to reading. One idea modifies another, until students begin discovering connections
and refining their topics even further.
Research Navigator simplifies students’ research efforts by giving them a convenient launching
pad for gathering data. The site has aggregated three distinct types of source material commonly
used in research assignments: academic journals (EBSCO ContentSelect), newspaper articles
(New York Times and Financial Times), and Web sites (Link Library).
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Finding Sources
Scholarly Journals
The EBSCO Academic Journal and Abstract Databases contains scholarly, peer-reviewed
journals in a wide variety of disciplines, including the MLA International Bibliography,
MagillOnLiterature Plus, and Academic Search Premier. If your students have not been exposed
to scholarly journals, you may want to take the time to provide them with a sense of what a
scholarly journal looks like and what kind of information it typically contains.
You will probably also want to clarify the differences between scholarly journals and magazines,
especially as they should or should not be used in academic research writing. What sets scholarly
journals apart from popular magazines like Newsweek or People is that the content of each
journal is peer-reviewed. This means that each journal has, in addition to an editor and editorial
staff, a pool of reviewers on whom the editorial staff relies in selecting appropriate articles for
publication. Academic journal articles also adhere to strict guidelines for methodology and
theoretical grounding. The information in journal articles is often more rigorously tested than
that found in popular magazines or newspaper articles, or on Web pages (which have, for the
most part, no scholarly or professional “filter” at all).
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Teaching Tip: Many students shy away from scholarly journals because they are
intimidated by the scientific or theoretical language, nature, and content. Instructors often
require students to use such sources in their research projects in part to familiarize
students with the skills needed to read this kind of information critically. Assignments
based on using Research Navigator may give your students the confidence they need to
navigate journals on their own for later assignments.
Searching for articles in EBSCO’s ContentSelect is easy. Here are some tips to help students find
articles for their research projects. (EBSCO Search Tips are also available at
<http://www.researchnavigator.com/about/search.html>.)
Sample Tips
Tip 1: Select a discipline. When first entering the database, users see a list of disciplines. To
search within a single discipline, click the name of the discipline. To search in more than
one discipline, click the box next to each discipline and click the ENTER button.
Tip 2: Basic Search. After selecting discipline(s), go to the Basic Search window which lets
users search for articles using a variety of methods: Standard Search, Match All Words,
Match Any Words, or Match Exact Phrase. For more information on these options, click
the Search Tips link at any time!
Tip 3: Using AND, OR, and NOT to help the search. In Standard Search, use AND, OR and
NOT to create a very broad or very narrow search:
AND searches for articles containing all of the words. For example, typing education
AND technology will search for articles that contain both education AND technology.
OR searches for articles that contains at least one of the terms. For example, searching
for education OR technology will find articles that contain either education OR
technology.
NOT excludes words so that the articles will not include the word that follows “NOT”:
For example, searching for education NOT technology will find articles that contain the
term education but NOT the term technology.
Tip 4: Using Match All Words. When selecting the “Match All Words” option, you will
automatically search for articles that only contain all of the words. The word “and” is not
necessary. The order of the search words does not matter. For example, typing education
technology will search for articles that contain both education AND technology.
Tip 5: Using Match Any Words. After selecting the “Match Any Words” option, type words, a
phrase, or a sentence in the window. The database searches for articles that contain any
of the terms typed (but will not search for words such as “in” and “the”). For example,
type the following words: rising medical costs in the United States. The database
searches for articles that contain rising, medical, costs, United, or States. To limit the
search to find articles that contain exact terms, use quotation marks—for example,
typing “United States” will only search for articles containing “United States” together
as words.
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Tip 6: Using Match Exact Phrase. Select this option to find articles containing an exact phrase.
The database searches for articles that include all the words entered, exactly as they were
typed. For example, type Flannery O’Connor’s use of religion to find articles that
contain the exact phrase “Flannery O’Connor’s use of religion.”
Tip 7: To switch to a Guided Search, click the Guided Search tab on the navigation bar, just
under the EBSCO Host logo. The Guided Search Window helps you focus your search
using multiple text boxes, Boolean operators (AND, OR, and NOT), and various search
options.
To create a search:
• Type the words to search for in the “Find” field.
• Select a field from the drop-down list. For example: AU-Author will search for
an author. For more information on fields, click Search Tips.
• Enter additional search terms in the text boxes (optional), and select and, or, not
to connect multiple search terms (see Tip 3 for information on and, or, and not).
• Click Search.
Tip 8: To switch to an Expert Search, click the Expert Search tab on the navigation bar, just
under the EBSCO Host logo. The Expert Search Window uses keywords and search
histories for articles. NOTE: Searches run from the Basic or Guided Search Windows are
not saved to the History File used by the Expert Search Window—only Expert Searches
are saved in the history.
Tip 9: Expert Searches use Limiters and Field Codes to help you search for articles. For more
information on Limiters and Field Codes, click Search Tips.
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Newspapers
The New York Times and FT.com (the Financial Times). Newspapers provide contemporary
information. Information in periodicals—journals, magazines, and newspapers—may be useful,
or even critical, when students are ready to focus in on specific aspects of a topic or to find the
most current information. There are some significant differences between newspaper articles
and journal articles and students should consider the level of scholarship that is most appropriate
for their research project. Popular or controversial topics may not be well-covered in journals,
while coverage in newspapers and magazines like Newsweek and Time may be extensive.
Research Navigator gives students access to a one-year, “search by subject” archive of articles
from one of the world’s leading newspapers—The New York Times. (To learn more about The
New York Times, visit them on the Web at <http://www.nytimes.com>.) The New York Times
search-by-subject archive is a very easy-to-use search tool. Students need only to type a word, or
multiple words separated by commas, into the search box and click Go. This search generates a
list of articles that have appeared in The New York Times over the last year, sorted
chronologically with the most recent article first. The search can be refined as needed by using
more specific search terms.
Teaching Tips: Encourage students to preview articles before printing them. Students
can preview articles by reading the abstracts and/or skimming the articles themselves,
paying special attention to introductions, highlighted terms/topics/points, lists, and
conclusions. Often, students hurry their research process by finding the necessary number
of articles, printing them out, and then trying to make them fit into their research projects
later on. This patchwork approach to research limits the writer’s ability to synthesize
source material and make connections between sources and the writer’s ideas.
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Teaching Tips: Encourage students to print out articles/sources once they have
previewed them and found them to be potentially valuable for their research projects.
Remind students that the value of each source may change—some strengthening and
weakening—as their research projects develop and they revise their thesis or add or
delete arguments. Students should be encouraged to print, make notes about, and file
sources that have potential value to the research project; then students can reduce the
amount of time spent relocating sources. Students who are more comfortable with
technology may want to save potentially valuable sources to disk to reduce printing costs.
Note: Make sure to review with your students the fair use and citation rules for using
online documents. Many students assume that any information available on the Internet
is “free” information; students sometimes cut and paste from online texts without
realizing the need to document the source. Direct students to the Avoiding Plagiarism
section of MyLiteratureLab for guidance on documentation of sources. Review with
students how to cite newspaper articles that are available online both in the text and at
the end of their text since these citations differ from the traditional print versions of the
same source.
Web sites
“Best Of The Web” Link Library. The collection of Web links organized by academic subject
and key terms can be easily searched. Students select their subject (American, English, and
World Literature or Children’s Literature) from the dropdown list and find the key term for their
search topic. Examples of key terms include allegory, Joyce Carol Oates, and neo-realism.
Clicking on the key term reveals a list of 5-7 editorially reviewed Web sites that offer
educationally relevant and credible content. When students use the key term “Jane Austen,” for
example, they find links to the OnLine Austen Journal, the Jane Austen Society of North
America Home Page, and an audio reading of Pride and Prejudice, as well as many other
Austen-specific resources. The Web links in this database are monitored and updated each week.
Teaching Tips: Since the sources compiled in the Link Library have been reviewed for
quality, you may want to recommend that your students use this database rather than such
popular search engines such as Google or Yahoo. While these engines may turn up more
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information than Link Library, that very amount of information can present problems for
students working on scholarly research projects; these problems include both information
overload (having to sort through hundreds, and sometime thousands, of sites for
appropriate information) and lack of credibility. Students may believe that anything
“published” on the Internet must be legitimate and credible, but often this is not the case.
Popular search engines like Google or Yahoo have their place in instruction, however—
particularly in helping students learn how to evaluate sources.
Using Your Library
After students have selected and narrowed their topic, they may want to seek source material not
only from the Internet but also from their school library. Research Navigator should not—and
does not try—to replace the library. In fact, it provides an additional resource—a guide to doing
library research effectively and efficiently.
Libraries may seem foreign and overwhelming to a generation of students brought up on the easy
access to information provided by the Internet. Research Navigator provides a bridge to the
library by taking students through a simple step-by-step overview of how to make the most of
library time. Written by a library scientist, the “Using Your Library” area of Research Navigator
explores:
•
•
•
Types of libraries
Choosing the tool to use (covering electronic databases)
Gathering data in the library
In addition, when students are ready to use the library to complete a research assignment or
research paper, Research Navigator includes 31 discipline-specific “library guides” (English is
one discipline) for students to use as roadmaps. Each guide includes an overview of the
discipline’s major subject databases, online journals, and key associations and newsgroups. The
library guide tailored to English introduces students to Comparative Literature Studies online,
the MLA, and the online catalog JSTOR, among many other journals and associations.
Encourage students to print the guide and take it to the library.
Start Writing
This writing tutorial leads students step-by-step through the process of writing an academic
paper. Sections in this area include:
•
•
•
•
Drafting a paper in an academic style
Incorporating reference material into your writing
Writing the introduction, body, and conclusion
Revising, proofreading, and formatting the rough draft
Also included is a bank of sample research papers for students to peruse.
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End Notes and Bibliography
The final step in the research process is the creation of endnotes and a bibliography. This area
authoritatively outlines the rules for using and documenting sources in a variety of styles. These
include:
•
•
How to cite sources from Research Navigator
Using MLA style
Tips for Instructors and Suggestions for Use
Student writers can benefit from the resources in Research Navigator throughout the different
stages of the research writing process. Research Navigator is especially beneficial for students
who feel overwhelmed with the process of handling a research project and researching online.
Especially in the early stages of research writing, students tend to be over-reliant on the popular
search engines with which they are already familiar, and they may be overwhelmed with too
much information and unable to evaluate it critically. Students who use Research Navigator are
assured of the credibility and reliability of the sources they find, and the information returned to
them in a search is manageable and targeted.
Here are two possible Web-based activities that can help your students become familiar with
Research Navigator:
Activity #1
•
•
Have students explore Research Navigator, either individually or in small groups of
two or three students. Give each student or group a particular area of the site to
explore. If you are in a computer classroom and doing this activity together, provide
ample time to complete the activity; fifteen to twenty minutes is usually enough.
Ask students to share their findings with the class. In less technologically-adept
classes, have students report orally on what they have found. In more skilled groups,
have them report electronically, either through a class-wide e-mail, a distribution list
that you have established, or as postings on a class discussion board.
Activity #2
•
•
•
Ask students to pick partners and then assign each team a research topic. (You may
want to brainstorm with the class to find a list of topics that the students find
engaging or compelling. The topics should be broad enough that student groups have
no trouble finding sources in Research Navigator.)
Look at the EBSCO Search Tips with the class. Talk a little about how related terms
or subtopics can affect an online search.
If you are in a computer classroom and doing this activity together, give students
fifteen to twenty minutes to complete an initial search.
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•
Have each team compile a bibliography of the ten most useful sources they have
found. Encourage them to use the MyLiteratureLab resources to create accurate MLA
citations.
Note: Research Navigator Web site does not allow students to word process or save their
searches; therefore, students must have a second window open on their computers to allow them
to type and save information as they find it; or they must print out their searches to have a record
of their work in Research Navigator.
Avoiding Plagiarism
Avoiding Plagiarism allows students to work through interactive tutorials to learn how to cite
and document sources responsibly in MLA format.
This tutorial offers users two choices from the site’s homepage:
•
•
Avoiding Plagiarism (MLA Citation Style)
Avoiding Plagiarism (APA Citation Style)
Once students select the documentation style they want, they are directed to a step-by-step
tutorial complete with self-tests and items for extended analysis. The steps include:
•
•
•
•
•
•
What is Plagiarism?
When to Document
Using Print & Electronic Sources
Avoiding Plagiarism
o Attribution
o Quotation Marks
o Citation
o Paraphrase
o Loyalty to Source
o Works Cited
o Citation for Images
Extended Analysis
Wrap-Up
Each step in both the MLA and the APA tutorials guides students to read and click to navigate to
the next step. Students do not need to complete the tutorial on one visit to the site; they can jump
ahead to continue their work or return to previous steps to review an earlier discussion.
The Avoiding Plagiarism tutorials also provide self-tests for students. Here is an example of the
MLA Tutorial’s “When to Document” self-test.
Self-Test: WHAT IS COMMON KNOWLEDGE?
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As you read each item in the list below, ask yourself this: Is this item common knowledge?
Answer yes or no.
Yes No
1. O.J. Simpson was acquitted of criminal charges for the
murder of his wife.
2. World War II began in 1939 and ended in 1945.
3. Research from the Human Genome Project estimates that
human beings have approximately 50,000 genes.
4. Currently, the fastest-growing group of Web users is
comprised of women over the age of 55.
5. Abraham Lincoln was the sixteenth president of the United
States of America.
6. Many literary critics believe that the novelist Virginia
Woolf drew extensively from her own experiences for the
central character in her novel Mrs. Dalloway.
7. In the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice takes
place on June 21st.
8. There are 5,283 hospice programs in the United States.
9. The freezing point of water is 32 degrees Fahrenheit or 0
degrees Centigrade.
10. The teen pregnancy rate in the United States fell eight
percent from 1995 to 1997.
When they have completed a self-test, students click on the Answers icon to check their answers
and read explanations in a pop-up window. They can then return to their work in the tutorial.
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Extended Analysis
The extended analysis section allows students to apply what they have learned from the
“Avoiding Plagiarism” tutorials. Here students can test how well they recognize plagiarism as
they read a student research paper. Students must pay careful attention to the sources that are
being quoted, paraphrased, or summarized in consideration of the seven rules of avoiding
plagiarism discussed during the tutorial.
Tips for Instructors and Suggestions for Use
Student writers can benefit from their work in Avoiding Plagiarism throughout a composition
course and at different stages in the research writing process. Avoiding Plagiarism helps students
to correctly paraphrase, summarize, and quote source material, as well as cite and document
sources in both MLA and APA style.
Students can use the Avoiding Plagiarism tutorials on their own, working through the tutorials at
their own pace and returning to them as needed throughout their research projects. Most pages or
“steps” in each tutorial can also be printed for quick student reference.
We encourage you to explore the tutorial yourself so that you understand the tutorial’s content
and can make connections to your own course, your students and their research projects, and to
other areas of MyLiteratureLab. We encourage you to identify teaching opportunities, learn the
Web site’s navigation method, and view the Web site’s additional resources and links.
Students should also be encouraged to review Avoiding Plagiarism before they submit both
drafts and final versions of their research projects for review. With peer review of drafts, for
example, students who have reviewed the appropriate tutorial will be better prepared to give
72
informed feedback about documentation of sources in other student papers. And students who
review the tutorial before submitting papers to instructors are more likely to correct their in-text
and end-of-text citations during the final editing stage.
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Faculty Teaching Guide to Accompany MyLiteratureLab

Transcription

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